The Narcea is a river in

Asturias Asturias (; ; ) officially the Principality of Asturias, is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensive with the provinces of Spain, province of Asturias and contains some of the territory t ...

. It is a

tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...

of the

Nalón River Nalón can refer to: * Nalón (Asturian comarca), in northern Spain * Nalón (river), a river in the comarca * Muros de Nalón Muros de Nalón ( Asturian: ''Muros'') is a small coastal municipality in the Spanish province of Asturias, with an ...

, starting about 5 km east of the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of Monasterio de Hermo and meeting the Nalón near the

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Pravia Pravia is a municipality in the Autonomous Community of the Principality of Asturias in Spain. It is bordered on the north by Cudillero and Muros de Nalón, on the east by Candamo and Soto del Barco, on the west by Cudillero and Salas, and ...

. The river spans 123 km and is the second longest in Asturias, following only the Nalón itself. The river is host to multiple

salmon Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...

preserves, and is additionally inhabited by the

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

Cantabrian brown bear The Cantabrian brown bear, Iberian brown bear, or Iberian bear (formerly ''Ursus arctos pyrenaicus'') is a population of Eurasian brown bears (''Ursus arctos arctos'') living in the Cantabrian Mountains of Spain. In Spain, it is known as the an ...

. In 842, the river was the site of the medieval battle between Nepotian and Ramiro I after the former had usurped the throne of Asturias. Nepotian and his army composed of

Asturians Asturians () are a Romance ethnic group native to the autonomous community of Asturias, in the North-West of the Iberian Peninsula. Culture and society Heritage The Asturians have Celtic ( Astures) and Latin cultural origins, most notably f ...

and

Basques The Basques ( or ; ; ; ) are a Southwestern European ethnic group, characterised by the Basque language, a Basque culture, common culture and shared genetic ancestry to the ancient Vascones and Aquitanians. Basques are indigenous peoples, ...

ambushed Ramiro's army at the river; as a result of the ensuing battle, the defeated Nepotian was imprisoned and blinded, and Ramiro was crowned

King of Asturias This is a list of the rulers of the Kingdom of Asturias, a kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula during the Early Middle Ages. It originated as a refuge for Visigothic Kingdom, Visigothic nobles following the Umayyad conquest of Hispania, conquest of I ...

.de Caunedo, Nicolás Castor (28 May 1854).
Un cronicón del siglo IX"
Semanario Pintoresco Español. 22: 172 – via Hemeroteca Digital.

References

Rivers of Spain Rivers of Asturias {{coord, 43.466667, -6.116667, display=title