| Medrano | |
| Settlement Type: | Municipality |
| Pushpin Map: | Spain La Rioja#Spain |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Type1: | Autonomous community |
| Subdivision Type2: | Comarca |
| Subdivision Name2: | Logroño |
| Population Total: | 321 |
| Coordinates: | 42.3833°N -35°W |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code |
| Postal Code: | 26374 |
Medrano is a municipality in La Rioja, Spain. It is situated 17km from the capital Logroño. There are 346 inhabitants[1] and it covers 7.46km².
The term limits to the north with Navarrete, to the east with Entrena, to the south with Sojuela and Daroca de Rioja and to the west with Hornos de Moncalvillo.
Its name and coat of arms are derived from the noble Medrano family. The earliest mention of Medrano, La Rioja is recorded in Sojuela (Logroño), on November 2, 1044.[2] The King of Navarre, García Sánchez III of Pamplona, known as the one from Nájera,
García Sánchez II of Navarre donated the town of Medrano and Sojuela to the Monastery of San Julián with the aim of restoring them. Queen Estefanía de Nájera, widow of King García Sánchez III of Pamplona, granted her the privilege of joining the villages of Campo, which together with Navarrete, Hornos, Medrano, Entrena, Velilla and Fuenmayor thus benefited from the joint use of water, pastures and paths.[4]
On September 1, 1054, Medrano, La Rioja is documented as one of the seven Villas del Campo, namely: Navarrete, Fuenmayor, Coscujos, Hornos de Moncalvillo, Medrano, Vilella (or Velilla), and Entrena.
In Burgos, on January 30, 1137, King Alfonso VII of Castile and León, known as the Emperor,' along with his wife, Empress Doña Berenguela de Barcelona, rectifies the prior of Santa María la Real de Nájera, by rescinding an improper grant to Abbot Don Pedro of San Millán de la Cogolla. The document specifically addresses the restitution of the church and monastery of Santa Coloma in the territory of Nájera, including the district of San Miguel in Nájera, as well as notable locations like the town of Medrano.
In 1185, Medrano was one of the towns, along with Entrena, Fuenmayor, and the Baztan Valley, that paid for the maintenance of María Ramírez de Medrano's hospital of San Juan de Acre in Navarrete, La Rioja with their thithes.[5]
A small panel, measuring 96.5 × 35 cm, originates from Medrano in La Rioja and features a depiction of an unidentified saint bishop on the front, with fragmentary scenes on the reverse, suggesting it was part of a triptych or polyptych. Medrano's Panel, located in the Diocesan Museum of Calahorra, is a significant example of Linear Gothic painting from the late 14th century. The saint bishop is shown in full liturgical attire, characterized by vivid colors and a lack of shadows or gradations, typical of the Linear Gothic style. The background, now yellowish, might have been originally golden. The reverse side contains small, obscured fragments of scenes, including a monarch and a bishop, likely the same saint depicted on the front, and a young man dressed in period fashion, with signs of intentional damage or alterations. Attributed to Maestro de Añastro, the panel shares stylistic similarities with the altarpiece of San Andrés de Añastro[6] and the panel of the Martyrdom of Saint Catherine. [7]
Montserrat Viñamata became the Countess of Medrano.[8] She is the granddaughter of the Duke of Almenara Alta, daughter of Don Luis Viñamata y Emmanueli and Doña María de la Concepción Martorell y Castillejo, Counts of Alba de Liste,[9] and, until 1998, daughter-in-law of Luisa Isabel Álvarez de Toledo, 21st Duchess of Medina Sidonia. She is the head of the Georgian Manor House.[10] [11]