Toro, Municipality of Castile and León, Spain
Toro is a municipality in Castile and León, laid out in a fan shape across a high plain at 735 meters elevation. The Collegiate Church of Santa María la Mayor sits at the center and anchors this historic settlement.
The town was the site of the 1476 Battle of Peleagonzalo, where Castilian forces met Portuguese armies during the War of Castilian Succession. This military engagement shaped its role in the region's late medieval history.
The Collegiate Church of Santa María la Mayor dominates the town center with its colorful western entrance, where a Flemish painting depicting the Virgin with a fly is kept inside. This artwork shows how European artistic movements reached this small Castilian town.
The terrain is easily walkable since the town's fan-shaped layout is logical and the church serves as a clear reference point. Wear sturdy shoes as the old town sits on uneven historic paving.
The sandy soils of the vineyards here protected the grapevines from phylloxera, the pest that devastated other Spanish wine regions. This natural advantage allowed the place to continue its wine tradition without interruption.
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