Huesca thematic

Number 85. Juny of 2005. Spanish language  Principal menu

Erés, a small village


Secular domain,
village of uncertain future


      This place of the province of Huesca belongs to the city council of Biscarrués. Its altitude is of 458 meters on the level of the sea and the distance from Huesca is 39 kilometers. The inhabitants are named "eresinos".
     During centuries, the village of Erés was of secular domain, where the acted like a mayor of the Ayerbe one. Also, at other moments it depended on Murillo de Gállego, reason because this place was enrolled in the province of Zaragoza, like proves the fact that it even got to belong to Tarazona between years 1495 and 1646 also. Finally, from 1711 to 1833 it appeared like jurisdiction territory of Huesca. But it formed own City council in 1834, merging with Biscarrués at 1845. It had one short municipal life, since the little registered population could not allow itself the waste that supposed to maintain its municipal independence.
      Madoz gave account, in 1848, of 12 houses and 58 inhabitants. Nevertheless, in the census of 1857 appear 86 inhabitants already. At the moment, in March of 2005, they are a fifteen inhabitans who occupy average dozen of houses.
     Erés is located to the north of Biscarrués, on the left margin of the Gállego river, whose waters begin to back up exactly there, by the effect of the dam of Ardisa. He is bordering with the province of Zaragoza; and so single it is enough with gaining the other border of the channel to change to that province. They tell that in times, the bailiff notified the neighbors, municipal subjects from cliff of the right border of the river, in order to avoid to have to give a long roundup until the place. He made it from an enormous flagstone with platform functions and that they gave in calling "piedra gritadera" (cry stone).
      The town locates its urban nucleus on the brink of a gorge, but in a level land. The truth is that the town only is a wide and clean street, with the square in an extreme and the parochial church in another one. Does not greater synthesis fit of a town, represented, generally, by those three only elements: a street, a square and a church.
     The amplitude of the street allows to the neighbors to develop to their whim, who never knew of scarcities, because the buildings looked for their expansion along of the urban route, instead of jamming around the building of the parochial, that is certainly, somewhat separated. It calls the attention the entrance to the town that has only the width of the narrow roadway of the highway that allows its access; it is hardly a space, without sidewalks, between two constructions. Once exceeded that entrance, in the center of the square, a well and a small sink speaks to us of the past; the arrival of running water to the houses, turned to in others times elementary and essential resources, in simple and dumb ornamentales testimonies.





      In the side opposed to the access to town, in the prolongation of which it is almost unique street, we will find the parochial; church that is dedicated to San Jorge, patron saint of Aragón. It is a work of century XVII, composed by a single ship covered with tube vault. The tower is later; it was raised in 1886, with its two sillar stone bodies.
      From the enclave of the church, the pan views are impressive, allowing to see all the limestone conglomerates of the "Kingdom of the Mallos", with the remarkable protagonism of Riglos; a relaxing pan that powers to the peace sensation that Erés inspires..

      Although in some documents and books appear Erés writing (with accent, like acute word), neighbors pronounce Eres, for that reason Alfonso Zapater thought in the convenience of suppressing the accent and of leaving the word like the own neighbors of Erés, in those years, they wanted it.
     Erés, in spite of the brevity of the town, is an pleasant place with enchantments, as much by its geographic situation, that offers from waters of Gállego river and the beautiful panoramics of the mallos of Riglos, until the familiar hospitality of its few inhabitants, of whom some show the old habits, not doubting a moment in offering house and foods to entertain the visitor.
      The place, even being so small, it has not resigned to enjoy municipal swimming pool and social club.
 Plaza de San Pedro
      Erés celebrates its fiestas the 23 of April, in honor of San Jorge, that exerts the double patron saint of the church and the town.
      It turns out inevitable to describe Erés without mentioning its threatened future, because its earth, for many years already, are running risk of being flooded by the creation of a marsh. The opinions, at this point, differ because the personal affectation and interests are different.

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* Alfonso Zapater, in "Aragón Town to Town"
** Manuel Tome' Bosqued



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