Puntos de Interés
Municipality
Rozas
The town of Rozas in Burgos belongs to the municipality of Merindad de Valdeporres. It is located on the left slope of the river Engaña, and a hill divides the town into two neighbourhoods. One of them is known as Rozas and the other as the Río Arriba neighbourhood.
In Rozas there are still 16 scattered houses and a complex that includes a palace in ruins and a church that is said to have belonged to the Count of La Revilla. The work on this complex was completed in 1610. In its heyday, it could be seen a protective stone wall built to protect the palace and church that shared one of the façades. Years later, when no one lived in these rooms, a heavy snowfall occurred that destroyed one of the palace’s walls and part of the church wall in 1679.
Although the administrator of the building carried out a reform, soon after, the weeds and the passage of time turned these buildings into the ruins that can be contemplated today, although the church was used to give liturgical service until 1972.
The palace had several battlements and a powerful tower. It also had a square-shaped parade ground. As for San Juan Bautista parish church, it was built in stone masonry, although today it can hardly be distinguished due to the abundant vegetation that populates its walls. It consisted of a single nave of two rectangular bodies in which the bell tower protruded. To enter the temple, you had to cross a Romanesque round arch where there was a heavy wooden door and wrought iron fittings.
Inside there was a stone baptismal font that was destroyed. The holy water font had better luck and is still preserved, since the masters who built this temple decided to carve it directly on the church’s wall. The Coats of Arms of the first Lords of La Revilla and their wives, which are located in the area of the main altar, are in surprisingly good condition.
The wall that surrounded both buildings is still standing in some parts, allowing the identification of the old round towers they had in some corners.
The festivities celebrated in this town are related to the traditional festivities of La Merindad de Valdeporres. In this sense, the big day is the Day of the Merindad which is celebrated every summer on 4th August. Likewise, the night of San Juan is celebrated in this town on 23rd June.
