History

Don Lope Díaz II de Haro, Lord of Biscay from 1214 to 1236, granted this status to the port of Plentzia in 1236. However, it was not until October 5, 1299, that his grandson, Don Diego López de Haro, issued the town charter.

The granting of Villa status to certain ports aimed to boost trade, particularly by facilitating the transport of Castilian wool, which was exported to Flanders for manufacturing. These towns were granted the Fuero of Logroño, a charter that provided privileges and exemptions to their inhabitants, along with freedom to buy and trade goods. This status ensured the Villa’s autonomy, placing it under the direct protection of the king and lessening the influence of local nobility.

Testimony to this era is the tower-house of Torrebarri, where visitors can see the coat of arms of the Butrón lineage, the region’s foremost noble family. This military nature tower was built by the family and restored in 1603, when the current coat of arms was placed. The current  building  was adapted to become a residential dwelling, although certain stylistic and decorative elements have been preserved. The coat of arms from the Múgica-Butrón lineage features an inscription in Basque, dated from 1603, which is one of the oldest epigraphic inscriptions preserved in this language: Muxica Areriocaz Agica/Butroe celangoada Oroç/Daquie Garaia Nago/Eria Gordeago, which can be interpreted as: Muxika tooth and nails against its enemies/Butrón as everyone knows/victorious I am/People be on guard.

Historically, the town’s main economic activities were fishing (mainly whales) and coastal trade. Family-owned shipyards were also common, but these gave way to significant tourism at the end of the 19^th and beginning of the 20^th centuries. This tourism was attracted by the Plentzia estuary and bay, the beach and the good connections with the Greater Bilbao area.  

In fact, Plentzia is currently one of the terminal stations of the Bilbao Metro system. Plentzia comprises several residential areas, including Isuskitza or Abanico de Plentzia (Fan of Plentzia), given that name because of its fan shape when seen from above.

According to tradition, every year  the so  called Antonlintxu sets off from Mount Isuskitza and sails the estuary downstream to eventually get off at Astillero square, where the townspeople await his arrival. The town feast day is held on 2nd September in tribute to Saint Antolin. However, the patron saint of the town is the Virgin of Candelaria, whose religious feast day falls on 2nd February.

Antolintxu is in charge of starting the festivities by launching a firework rocket (known as the txupinazo). Nowadays, Antolintxu (a town resident chosen by the citizens) is accompanied by a female figure called “Madalentxu”, an affectionate diminutive of Magdalene (Saint Mary Magdalene is the religious saint patron of the town). The celebrations usually last  six or seven days and they take place  during the end of August and the beginning of September. The days are occupied by activities such as playback sessions, costume competitions, fishing muble (a local fish), cooking marmitako (tuna pots), Spanish omelettes contest, fire bull, fireworks and a centennial agricultural fair consisting of more than fifty stalls and a wide variety of local products.

The teams are scored at the end of the festivities according to the activities performed by each. The team with the highest score receives the “Golden Alpargata” (espadrille) on the last day of the festivities as a reminder of their participation.

More information is available Museo Plasentia de Butrón

12^th century

Lope Díaz II de Haro founded the town in 1236 on the territory of the Gorliz churchyard by the name Placencia de Butrón, the first name given to Plentzia. It was subsequently re-founded several decades later, in 1299, by Diego López de Haro. The new town grew around a small harbour on the right bank of the Butrón river, namely where it flowed into the Cantabrian Sea. The spot  soon became a significant trade center. From the very beginning,  the fishermen from Placencia de Butrón became expert whale hunters. The town’s shipyard industry underwent significant development due to the quality and quantity of the wood in the surrounding forests.

15^th to 17^th centuries

In 1437, a fire destroyed a large part of the town. However, neither this fire nor the one at the end of the 17^th century were able to ruin the town’s increasing reputation and wealth. In the 16^th century  the fishermen and local sailors founded the Saint Peter’s Guild of Seafarers, and during the following century Plentzia undertook a series of urban renovation projects that affected its port, streets and roads.

19^th and 20^th centuries

As in many other cases, the 19th century wars and the crisis in the high-seas fishing industry marked the port’s decline, which eventually disappeared  as a result of the enormous sand bank at the mouth of the river, which only allowed the passage of very shallow vessels. Fortunately, Plentzia’s proximity to Bilbao and Algorta attracted a new social class to its beach, where it began to reside temporarily during holiday periods. This event turned Plentzia into a tourist centre, a feature preserved thanks to the quality of its beach, which is one of the most popular on the Basque coast. As an anecdote, it may be stated that the town’s streets were also the setting for some of the scenes portrayed in the novel Fortunata and Jacinta, by Benito Pérez de Galdós.