The Cathedrals of Northern Spain: Their History and Their Architecture; Together with Much of Interest Concerning the Bishops, Rulers and Other Personages Identified with ThemRudy, Charles
History
The Cathedrals of Northern Spain: Their History and Their Architecture; Together with Much of Interest Concerning the Bishops, Rulers and Other Personages Identified with Them
Rudy, Charles
Cathedrals -- Spain
The power of the Suevos, who were seated firmly in Tuy, was at last
completely broken, and the capital, its inhabitants fighting
energetically to the end, was at length conquered. It was the last
stronghold to fall into the hands of the conquerors. A century later
Witiza, the sovereign of the Visigoths, made Tuy his capital for some
length of time, and the district round about is full of the traditions
of the doings of this monarch. Most of these legends denigrate his
character, and make him appear cruel, wilful, and false. One of them,
concerning Duke Favila and Doña Luz, is perhaps the most popular.
According to it, Witiza fell in love with the former's wife, Doña Luz,
and, to remove the husband, he heartlessly had his eyes put out, on the
charge of being ambitious, and of having conspired against the throne.
The fate that awaited Doña Luz, who defended her honour, was no better,
according to this legend.
After the return of Witiza to Toledo, the city slowly lost its
importance, and since then she has never recovered her ancient fame.
Like the remaining seaports of Galicia,--or such cities as were situated
near the ocean,--Tuy was sacked and pillaged by Arabs and vikings alike.
The times were extremely warlike, and Galicia, from her position, and on
account of the independent spirit of the noblemen, was called upon to
suffer more than any other region, and Tuy, near the ocean, and a
frontier town to boot, underwent greater hardships than any other
Galician city. Of an admirable natural position, it would have been able
to resist the attacks of Gudroed and Olaf, of the Portuguese noblemen
and of Arab armies, had it been but decently fortified. The lack of such
fortifications, however, and the neglect and indifference with which it
was, as a rule, regarded by the kings of Asturias, easily account for
its having fallen into the hands of enemies, of having been razed more
than once to the ground, of having been the seat of ambitious and
conspiring noblemen who were only bent on thrashing their neighbours,
Christians and infidels alike.
In the sixth century Tuy had already been raised to the dignity of a
city, but until after the eleventh century the prelates of the church,
tyrants when the times were propitious, but cowardly when danger was at
hand, were continually removing their see to the neighbouring villages
and mountains to the rear. They left their church with surprising
alacrity and ease to the mercy of warriors and enemies, to such an
extent, in fact, that neither are documents at hand to tell us what
happened exactly in the darker ages of mediæval history, nor are the
existing monuments in themselves sufficient to convince us of the
vicissitudes which befell the city, its see, and the latter's flocks.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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