Tomb of the Lovers of Teruel
Europa was named after the beautiful daughter of the Phoenician king Agénor, who was seduced by Zeus and became the first queen of Crete after this god fell madly in love with her. From its origins, the old continent is tied to romance through this myth and for being the setting for some of the most passionate and popular love stories in literature.
With these credentials, now that it's getting closer Valentine's Day! it may be a good idea to take a getaway to some of the destinations that are part of the route Europe in love, promoted by the Spanish city of Teruel. A European network that requires member cities that the love legend set in the city is alive today through some social or academic movement. Do you want to know which towns are part of the Europe Enamorada route?
Teruel (Aragon, Spain)
This Aragonese city is the starting point of this route Europe in love thanks to the famous legend of the Lovers of Teruel. The idea was born from the desire of the Teruel City Council to twin with Verona, the scene of the even more well-known play Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare.
The legend of the Lovers, which dates back to the XNUMXth century, has historical roots. In 1555, in the course of some works that were carried out in the church of San Pedro, the mummies of a man and a woman who had been buried several centuries before were found. According to a document found later, those bodies belonged to Diego de Marcilla and Isabel de Segura, those of the Lovers of Teruel.
Isabel was the daughter of one of the richest families in the city, while Diego was the second of three siblings, which at that time was equivalent to having no inheritance rights. For this reason, the girl's father refused to grant her his hand but gave her a period of five years to make a fortune and achieve her purpose.
Bad luck caused Diego to return from the war with riches on the day the term expired and Isabel to marry another man by design of her father, believing that he had died.
Resigned, the young man asked her for one last kiss but she refused as she was married. Faced with such a blow, the young man fell dead at his feet. The next day, at Diego's funeral, the girl broke protocol and gave him the kiss that she had denied him in life, and immediately fell dead next to him.
Since 1997 the city recreates in February the tragic love story by Diego de Marcilla and Isabel de Segura on the occasion of Valentine's Day. During these days, Teruel goes back to the XNUMXth century and its inhabitants dress in medieval clothes and adorn the historic center of the city to represent the legend. This festival, known as the Weddings of Isabel de Segura, each year attracts more visitors.
Verona (Italy)
Shakespeare chose this city as the setting for the most famous romantic tragedy of all time: Romeo and Juliet, the young lovers belonging to two enemy families. Among its many attractions, Verona has a balcony known as Juliet's Balcony which has become a great tourist phenomenon. In addition, you can visit the houses of the lovers, with free admission to Juliet during Valentine's Day. There the contest "Amada Julieta" is organized in which the most romantic love letter is awarded.
During Valentine's Day, the streets and squares of the city are adorned with flowers, red lamps and heart-shaped balloons. Also in the Plaza dei Signori, a flea market is organized whose stalls are arranged in a special way to draw a heart. There you can get the perfect gift for your partner and make this stay an unforgettable memory.
Currently, Verona is trying to launch a project similar to the Weddings of Isabel de Segura in Teruel, to involve Veronese in the re-creation of the history of Romeo and Juliet and thus promote tourism that the Europe Enamorada route could awaken.
Montecchio Maggiore (Italy)
The neighbors of Montecchio Maggiore maintain that Romeo and Juliet belonged to this Italian town. According to the story, Count Luigi Da Porto was wounded in a war in the XNUMXth century and recovered in his house in Montecchio Maggiore, from whose window you could see two hills with two facing castles: one of the Capulets and the other of the Montagues.
These views would have suggested a tale to him, the story of two lovers belonging to enemy families, which was the one that later influenced Shakespeare when it came to writing Romeo and Juliet. In this way, Montecchio Maggiore becomes part of the Europe in Love route.
If, as it seems, the account of Count Luigi Da Porto inspired Shakespeare to write 'Romeo and Juliet', It is possible that the Lovers of Teruel are the ones who are, ultimately, behind the most famous love story of all time. When the Crown of Aragon dominated some parts of Italy, King Roberto I lived in Naples, who was married to Violante de Aragón, an Aragonese who was able to take all the legends of her land there.
The writer Boccaccio, who was years later at the court of Naples, narrates in his 'Decamerón' the story of Girólamo and Salvestra, a copy of that of the lovers of Teruel. His famous 'Decameron' could serve as an inspiration to Luigi Da Porto, whose narration of the two lovers from rival families in turn probably influenced Shakespeare.
Sulmona (Italy)
The inhabitants of this city near Rome claim for Sulmona the title of 'City of Love' because in it was born in the XNUMXst century Ovid, author of the work 'Ars Amandi', which had a definitive impact on all love literature of the Middle Ages.
The inclusion of Sulmona in the Europa Enamorada route is very interesting because it opens the focus not only to famous love stories, but also to thinkers and intellectuals who are related to the subject.
Paris (France)
The French capital could not be missing on the Europe in Love route thanks to the love story of Abelardo and Eloísa, two young people of the twelfth century who promised themselves eternal love in their letters. Abelard was a philosopher who had a forbidden love with Heloise, niece of the canon of the Paris Cathedral. When she became pregnant, they fled to Great Britain in order to have their son there, but upon returning the canon castrated Abelard and forced Eloísa to enter a convent.
During Valentine's Day you can visit the romantic Le mur des je t'aime in Paris, 'The wall of I Love You', a space where “I love you” is written in more than 300 different languages. The work was born at the initiative of Frédéric Baron who thought of creating a special place to commemorate love on Valentine's Day. The work is installed in the Square Jehan Rictus, a park in the Montmatre neighborhood.