San Adrian (tunnel)
Encyclopedia
Way of St. James
The Way of St. James or St. James' Way is the pilgrimage route to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tradition has it that the remains of the apostle Saint James are buried....
. It consists of a natural cave carved by water erosion in the rock (called Lizarrate, arguably stemming from "leize arrate", 'the stone gate of the cave') with an opening on either side north and south; it also holds an hermitage inside. The tunnel provides a natural passage dividing the provinces of Gipuzkoa and Álava/Araba
Álava
Álava is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lord of Álava. Its capital city is Vitoria-Gasteiz which is also the capital of the autonomous community...
(the actual borderline locating at the Alto de la Horca). Incidentally, the Spanish-Basque
Basque language
Basque is the ancestral language of the Basque people, who inhabit the Basque Country, a region spanning an area in northeastern Spain and southwestern France. It is spoken by 25.7% of Basques in all territories...
linguistic boundary of the twentieth century was also established in this area, the next village south, Zalduondo
Zalduondo
Zalduondo is a village and municipality located in the province of Araba , in the Basque Country , northern Spain.-External links:*...
, having been predominantly Spanish speaking during that period. Nowadays many hikers cross the tunnel in order to gain access to the nearby peaks, forests and grazing fields, namely Aratz
Aratz
Aratz is a mountain of the Basque Country located at the mountain range Altzania that provides the extension for the massif Aizkorri, in the country of Spain...
, Aizkorri and Urbia.
Name
As so many times in BasqueBasque language
Basque is the ancestral language of the Basque people, who inhabit the Basque Country, a region spanning an area in northeastern Spain and southwestern France. It is spoken by 25.7% of Basques in all territories...
place- and person-names, this name of worship (San Adrian) has gone through a mutation arguably brought about by scribes and people ignorant of Basque. The pass itself is attested as Leizarrate at the beginning of the 17th century, while nowadays this naming (in the modern form Lizarrate) is usually limited to the rock in Spanish, with Basque still retaining the name Lizarrate also with its original meaning – i.e. to refer to the tunnel. Originally the hermitage may have been dedicated to the "Sancta Trinitate" or Holy Trinity. Yet the word, like many Romance
Romance languages
The Romance languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family, more precisely of the Italic languages subfamily, comprising all the languages that descend from Vulgar Latin, the language of ancient Rome...
and Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
words turns out messy to pronounce in Basque, and it underwent a reduction (along the phonetic rules exhaustively described by K. Mitxelena) that ultimately resulted in Sandrati or Sandratei, as locals call it. Other phonetic outputs as attested in place-names around the area include Sandrati, Santa Tria and variations, especially in the lands of Álava/Araba
Álava
Álava is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lord of Álava. Its capital city is Vitoria-Gasteiz which is also the capital of the autonomous community...
extending south of the mountain range that San Adrian provides the pass for: Santa Tria (village Audikana), San Tetria (village Contrasta 1556, leftover place-name of a former hermitage otherwise called in Romance
Romance languages
The Romance languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family, more precisely of the Italic languages subfamily, comprising all the languages that descend from Vulgar Latin, the language of ancient Rome...
San Adrian).
Curiously enough, Saint Adrian does not hold a representative position among Basque religious icons, as opposed to the ubiquitous San Martin, San Miguel or San Juan/Donibane, but Saint Adrian was actually much revered in the ways of St James. To sum up, the name San Adrian results from a phonetic interpretation by Romance-speaking people of the Basque name for "Sancta Trinitate". In fact, the existing "San Adrian" place-names are not far from the San Adrian tunnel, where locals still gather in a celebration on the Trinity Day or following Sunday on a yearly basis.
History
The occurrence and relevance of the tunnel is attested since the 16th century, more so since the 13th, when historic circumstances rendered it a preferred route for pilgrimagePilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
and trade. The status increasingly gained at that time by the San Adrian pass and the way coming south from Gascony
Gascony
Gascony is an area of southwest France that was part of the "Province of Guyenne and Gascony" prior to the French Revolution. The region is vaguely defined and the distinction between Guyenne and Gascony is unclear; sometimes they are considered to overlap, and sometimes Gascony is considered a...
down into Gipuzkoa was to have an important impact on the social, economic and constructing development of the population nuclei located on it and around. Yet the heyday of this branch of the Way of St. James
Way of St. James (route descriptions)
The Way of St. James extends from all corners of Europe, and even North Africa, on its way to Santiago de Compostela and Finisterre.The local authorities try to restore many of the ancient routes, even those used in a limited period, in the interest of tourism....
was to go on the wane thereafter by an ebb in popularity, the main trade and pilgrimage stream shifting to the more convenient French Way
The French Way
The French Way is the most popular of the routes of the Way of St. James, the ancient pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. It runs from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port on the French side of the Pyrenees to Roncesvalles on the Spanish side and then another 780km on to Santiago de...
(via Orreaga
Roncesvalles
Roncesvalles is a small village and municipality in Navarre, northern Spain. It is situated on the small river Urrobi at an altitude of some 900 metres in the Pyrenees, about 8 kilometres from the French frontier....
).
Prehistory
The mountain pass was used for ages by shepherds, as evidenced by prehistoric traces of seasonal cattle migration, dolmenDolmen
A dolmen—also known as a portal tomb, portal grave, dolmain , cromlech , anta , Hünengrab/Hünenbett , Adamra , Ispun , Hunebed , dös , goindol or quoit—is a type of single-chamber megalithic tomb, usually consisting of...
s and burial mounds (usually small) in the area. Cattle, especially sheep, keep on grazing up to these days on the steep pastures all around the area of the cave. Place-names associated to alien cultures, such as neighbouring town Zegama
Zegama
Zegama is a town and municipality in the Goierri region of the province of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country, northern Spain...
or Arakama (commonplace family name in this region), claimed by some scholars to stem from Indo-European, suggest that European peoples may have used this pass.
Antiquity and Early Middle Ages
In step with the popular name, the "Roman way" (also called by locals estratea es̺ˈtɾatea), some point to the construction of the original roadway by the Romans, with continuous upkeep and renovation in the Middle Ages. At any rate, this stretch is not located on the important axis Bordeaux-AstorgaAb Asturica Burdigalam
Ab Asturica Burdigalam was a Roman road that linked the towns of Asturica Augusta in Gallaecia and Burdigala in Aquitania....
cutting its way east to west through the Alava plains (merging point with the Tunnel Route in Salvatierra/Agurain
Salvatierra/Agurain
Salvatierra in Spanish and Agurain in Basque , it is a town and municipality located in the province of Álava in the Basque Autonomous Community, northern Spain. The municipality, numbering 4,407 inhabitants , is in turn the head town of the district or Cuadrilla of Salvatierra...
). A Roman inscription has been found in Zegama
Zegama
Zegama is a town and municipality in the Goierri region of the province of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country, northern Spain...
(only two sites discovered so far in Gipuzkoa, the other one locating in the ancient Oiasso
Oiasso
Oiasso, Oiasona or Oiarso was a Basque Roman town located on the left bank of the Bidasoa estuary in the Bay of Biscay . Archaeological evidence unearthed recently pinpoints the core area of Oiasso in the old quarter of Irun by the Spanish-French border, where harbour and bath remains have been...
). A reference of the hermitage and pass of San Adrian in the blurred early ages is provided in Noticias Históricas (by J.A. Llorente
Juan Antonio Llorente
Juan Antonio Llorente was a Spanish historian and liberal activist....
), where the spot is identified (reasonably so, see Name) as the "Sanctam Trianam" landmark cited as establishing the southern boundaries of the bishopric of Bayonne
Bayonne
Bayonne is a city and commune in south-western France at the confluence of the Nive and Adour rivers, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, of which it is a sub-prefecture...
. Early Medieval Navarre
Navarre
Navarre , officially the Chartered Community of Navarre is an autonomous community in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Country, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and Aquitaine in France...
se and Castilian
Castile (historical region)
A former kingdom, Castile gradually merged with its neighbours to become the Crown of Castile and later the Kingdom of Spain when united with the Crown of Aragon and the Kingdom of Navarre...
coins and copper buckles have been gathered in the tunnel, confirming that it was frequented in advance of the 13th century. The coastal route was dangerous on account of Viking
Viking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
attacks and raids, while the southern roads, namely the French Way
The French Way
The French Way is the most popular of the routes of the Way of St. James, the ancient pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. It runs from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port on the French side of the Pyrenees to Roncesvalles on the Spanish side and then another 780km on to Santiago de...
crossing Pamplona/Iruñea
Pamplona
Pamplona is the historial capital city of Navarre, in Spain, and of the former kingdom of Navarre.The city is famous worldwide for the San Fermín festival, from July 6 to 14, in which the running of the bulls is one of the main attractions...
, Logroño
Logroño
Logroño is a city in northern Spain, on the Ebro River. It is the capital of the autonomous community of La Rioja, formerly known as La Rioja Province.The population of Logroño in 2008 was 153,736 and a metropolitan population of nearly 197,000 inhabitants...
and on to Burgos
Burgos
Burgos is a city of northern Spain, historic capital of Castile. It is situated at the edge of the central plateau, with about 178,966 inhabitants in the city proper and another 20,000 in its suburbs. It is the capital of the province of Burgos, in the autonomous community of Castile and León...
was subject to Muslim forays and attacks, which rendered the Alava
Álava
Álava is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lord of Álava. Its capital city is Vitoria-Gasteiz which is also the capital of the autonomous community...
n lands (and therefore the San Adrian tunnel route) safer and more secure, as "they have always stayed in possession of its inhabitants".
Late Middle Ages
After snatching the territories of Alava and Gipuzkoa from NavarreNavarre
Navarre , officially the Chartered Community of Navarre is an autonomous community in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Country, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and Aquitaine in France...
, Alfonso X encouraged the use of this stretch that connected by land Castile
Castile (historical region)
A former kingdom, Castile gradually merged with its neighbours to become the Crown of Castile and later the Kingdom of Spain when united with the Crown of Aragon and the Kingdom of Navarre...
to Gascony
Gascony
Gascony is an area of southwest France that was part of the "Province of Guyenne and Gascony" prior to the French Revolution. The region is vaguely defined and the distinction between Guyenne and Gascony is unclear; sometimes they are considered to overlap, and sometimes Gascony is considered a...
through the strip extending from San Sebastian to Irun
Irun
Irun is a town of the Bidasoa-Txingudi region in the province of Gipuzkoa in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain...
. With a view to strengthening both trade and military grip in the region, the king founded in 1256 the towns of Salvatierra
Salvatierra/Agurain
Salvatierra in Spanish and Agurain in Basque , it is a town and municipality located in the province of Álava in the Basque Autonomous Community, northern Spain. The municipality, numbering 4,407 inhabitants , is in turn the head town of the district or Cuadrilla of Salvatierra...
(Agurain), Segura
Segura (Guipúzcoa)
Segura is a small town and municipality in the Goierri region of the province of Gipuzkoa in the autonomous community of the Basque Country in northern Spain.-External links:* *...
and Villafranca (Ordizia
Ordizia
Ordizia is a town and municipality located in the Goierri region of the province of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country, northern Spain.The professional cycle road race Prueba Villafranca de Ordizia is held yearly in Ordizia....
) in various spots of the way, so becoming popular with pilgrims, that could find there shelter and safety.
Modern Times
Despite pilgrimagePilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
shift to the flatter, safer and more convenient French Way
The French Way
The French Way is the most popular of the routes of the Way of St. James, the ancient pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. It runs from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port on the French side of the Pyrenees to Roncesvalles on the Spanish side and then another 780km on to Santiago de...
, the San Adrian tunnel road kept its profile and was much in use as a European route in the 15th, 16th and 17th century; it is worth remembering that the former was in Navarre
Navarre
Navarre , officially the Chartered Community of Navarre is an autonomous community in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Country, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and Aquitaine in France...
se territory (definite Castilian
Castile (historical region)
A former kingdom, Castile gradually merged with its neighbours to become the Crown of Castile and later the Kingdom of Spain when united with the Crown of Aragon and the Kingdom of Navarre...
conquest of Navarre in 1521), so Castilian kings continued to foster the tunnel route. At this period, evidence and descriptions about the route given by pilgrims and other users coming from Europe grow more frequent.
The San Adrian mount and pass are "rugged and difficult for horses", comments the cartographer Jan Janssonius
Jan Janssonius
Johannes Janssonius was a Dutch cartographer who lived and worked in Amsterdam in the 17th century....
in his Novus Atlas. "The passengers usually carve their names on the thick stones or the rocks, so there are recorded many names with the date of the year they crossed the roughness of these mountains", he adds. In approx. 1567, Jorge Braun conjures up the inside of the tunnel: the nice inn and the good suppers offered to the pilgrims, especially to those who brought money along, and the fodder supplied to horses, no matter if the travellers were devoid of money. In 1572, J.B. Venturino travelled in the retinue of the patriarch of Alexandria, who crossed the tunnel northwards. The cavern "is dark and frightening", observes, but there he also mentions the hermitage and the house of the governor, responsible for watching the pass, as havens of preaching and safety guarantee for travellers. According to tradition, king Enrique IV of Castile (ruling 1454–1474) and later sister and queen Isabel I of Castile crossed the tunnel. Legend has it, on his route from Germany to Spain emperor Charles V
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
first dismounted from the horse at this cave.
Since the Middle Ages the tunnel has been a point where tolls are paid on account of its border position. Yet usually at night, when the gate was shut, smugglers skip the tunnel by mounting up the rock North of the tunnel through a very narrow path called Ochoa Arrate. At the time, highwaymen frequenting the area are dreaded by pilgrims and travellers alike, who were not acquainted with the wild surroundings where local bandits could easily stalk and find a hideout. The care provided inside the tunnel is welcome. Many remember in their travel memoirs the cosy atmosphere found at the inn, the pilgrims singing and the "fat woman" serving them. Above the North entrance of the tunnel, the fortress watches and protects the pass, a building that may hold 100 soldiers, as reported by a traveller in the XVIIth century. Much appreciated water sprung out of the stone wall in the tunnel, as told by a Franciscan in 1633.
Meanwhile, other routes grow gradually more important at the expense of the stretch corresponding to the San Adrian tunnel. "The San Adrian pass is good only for people on horse or on foot, since the carriage way exiting Vitoria goes through Salinas, Mondragon, Oñate and Villareal [from Gipuzkoa]", explains the arguably French Basque traveller J.C. Santoyo in 1612. However, this stretch continues to be widely used up to the late 18th century, when the new King's Highway from Madrid to France is built in 1765 and traffic shifts, so spurring the definite decay of the San Adrian tunnel way.
Surroundings
- In the Gipuzkoan side: the hamlet of Otzaurte (652 m). A concrete track starting off from the main paved road (ZegamaZegamaZegama is a town and municipality in the Goierri region of the province of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country, northern Spain...
-Altsasu, GI-2637) heads south. Interestingly, this line splits the waters that slide to the Mediterranean through the EbroEbroThe Ebro or Ebre is one of the most important rivers in the Iberian Peninsula. It is the biggest river by discharge volume in Spain.The Ebro flows through the following cities:*Reinosa in Cantabria.*Miranda de Ebro in Castile and León....
watershed and those flowing north to the Atlantic through the Oria RiverOria RiverThe Oria is a river in the Basque Country at the north of the Iberian Peninsula. It's one of a series of Basque rivers flowing into the Bay of Biscay and the main river of the province Gipuzkoa in volume , length and basin , the main feature of these rivers aligned south to north being their...
. The track winds up the beech forest. Hikers may follow the red and white GR signs leading to paths that alternately detach from and merge into the main concrete track. After a while, the Beunda/e pass looks out into a wild valley (20'), the track heading west down the slope. In the landmark Aldaola (50'), a track heads up west, while vehicles should follow the left track sloping down. Going west, in a few metres a steep wet slope lies left out of the main track (red and white GR signs) until it joins a wide track near the refuge (1h5). From there, an overt view of the San Adrian tunnel could be seen, while the easily noticeable gentle path ascends west to the cave, merging with the St James roadway of cobblestone layout coming from Zegama (1h20). On choosing the left track down (vehicles), in a couple of minutes the stream is reached and crossed to the other side, where vehicles could park at a sharp bend (see map); hikers may ascend up north through a narrow path making its way out of the forest towards the refuge. - In the AlavaÁlavaÁlava is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lord of Álava. Its capital city is Vitoria-Gasteiz which is also the capital of the autonomous community...
n side: the carpark (dead end) of Zumarraundi (ZalduondoZalduondoZalduondo is a village and municipality located in the province of Araba , in the Basque Country , northern Spain.-External links:*...
). A patchwork of paths sloping up north among beech trees penetrates in the dense forest. Traces of the medieval roadway may be easily noticed winding up (20') to the highest point of the mountain pass, the Alto de la Horca, named after the gibbet formerly set up there (35'). Sloping down a hollow, the medieval track leads north past the spring of Ezkaratza on the right (45'), until the tunnel is attained (55').
Pilgrims coming south from Zegama
Zegama
Zegama is a town and municipality in the Goierri region of the province of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country, northern Spain...
take the pilgrimage way, which follows a paved road first (Zegama-Altsasu, GI-2637) and splits away through a concrete track that ascends on the right (signs all the way, see Graphic description of the Segura-Salvatierra/Agurain stretch). On nearing the San Adrian tunnel, the hut shaped Sancti Spiritus hermitage stands right on the left of the way. It is often claimed that it may have belonged to the Templar Knights, while this association remains contentious.
External links
- Description of the Tunnel Route's accommodations, by the Confraternity of Saint James
- Graphic description of the Segura-Salvatierra/Agurain stretch
- Description of the whole Tunnel Route by the Tourist Office of the regional Basque Government