Salamanca is a city in western Spain, the capital of the province of Salamanca, which belongs to the autonomous community (region) of Castile-Leon (Castilla y León).
The city was founded in the pre-Roman period by the Vacceos, an indigenous tribe, as one of a pair of forts to defend their territory near the Duero river. (The other became Zamora). In the third century BC, Hannibal laid siege to the city. With the fall of the Carthaginians to the Romans, the city began to take more importance as a commercial hub. At this time it was called Helmantica or Salmantica.
A central place in the city, the Plaza Mayor, surrounded by shaded arcades, is known as the living room of the Salmantinos (Salamancans). It was constructed by Andres Garcia de Quifiones at the beginning of the 18th century; it would hold 20,000 people, once to witness bullfights, today to attend a concert, and is one of the finest squares in Europe. Salamanca is considered to be one of the most spectacular Renaissance cities in Europe. Every period of the year, specially in summer, the city is full of tourists that support the main economic activity in the city. Through the centuries the sandstone buildings have gained an exquisite golden glow that has given Salamanca the nickname La Ciudad Dorada, the golden city. This golden glow is unique in Spain and is due to the "Villamayor Stone", a very special type of sandstone coming from a quarry situated in Villamayor, a village close to Salamanca.
The old Romanesque cathedral was founded in the 12th century. The dome that covers its crossing springs from a double arcade that is daringly pierced with windows, a distant reflection of Hagia Sophia.