The clock tower, of the church of Our Lady of the Assumption, stands in the centre of the fortified mount.
Close set mediaeval streets stretch away down the steep hillsides around it.
Grand porticos and mullioned windows speak of wealth and power.
The Santa Maria gate protects church and townsfolk alike.
The crest of Hondarribia set proudly above it.
Beside the harbour a stone frieze tells the tale, Bayeux Tapestry style, panels set along its length, of how Fuenterrabia (or Fontarrabie, when in French hands) became Hondarribia.
Suffice to say, the story is a long and bloody struggle for self determination. Involving the kings of Navarre (in tenth century Spain), revolutionary France, the Spanish Civil War and the recognition of the Basque Country as a self governing region.
The outcome, of the centuries of warring, is that the town is Basque. Referring to itself by its Basque name, of Hondarribia and not by its Spanish name of Fuenterrabia. I stand corrected.
PS: The mystery of the flag with the red cross, and coat of arms, on a white ground (from yesterday's post) was solved today. It is the flag of Hondarribia.
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