Puente antiguo sobre el río Orbigo, Hospital de Orbigo, Léon, 1998.In legend it is said the bridge d

Puente antiguo sobre el río Orbigo, Hospital de Orbigo, Léon, 1998.In legend it is said the bridge dates to Roman times, but evidence suggests it was originally an early medieval construction. Important during the Reconquista, the bridge was destroyed during the Peninsular Wars in the 19th century. It was rebuilt in the 20th century.“In 1434, the Leonese knight Suero de Quiñones held a tournament in which he or one of his companions challenged all men of equal rank who wished to cross the bridge here to a jousting tournament, Suero holding this bridge in the name of unrequited love. By 1434 the skill of jousting was not a standard part of military training but the challenge was taken seriously. Since 1434 was a Jacobean Holy Year, the traffic upon the Road of St James was considerable. The tournament lasted from July 11 until 9 August and Don Suero claimed to have broken 300 lances by the end. Twenty four years later Suero de Quiñones was killed by Gutierre de Quijada, a knight he had beaten at the 1434 tournament.” Wikipedia.Pilgrims on the Camino fránces walking or cycling toward Santiago de Compostela (2 weeks or more to the west for most walkers) still cross the bridge. The culinary specialty of the town is sopa de truchas which, despite its name, is trout baked on a breadcrumb crust. -- source link

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