The strange name of the town is due, according to the chronicles of Father Damián Janáriz, to the defeat that King Ramiro II of León inflicted on the Moorish army next to the hermitage of the Virgen de la Guía. Since then, this riverside town (which had been known as La Guía), began to be called Matanza. It was in 1916 when “de Soria” was added. Nowadays, Matanza de Soria belongs to the municipality of San Esteban de Gormaz.

Its architecture preserves good examples of traditional adobe construction. But if anything stands out in Matanza de Soria it is the Romanesque church of San Juan Bautista, with a single nave and of Romanesque origin, although it also has Gothic elements. The most curious feature of the church is undoubtedly the pairs of blind arches on both sides of the presbytery. On the north wall there is a group of strange graffiti made with ochre paint in which geometric figures and birds are depicted.

Matanza de Soria is the fourth stage of the Camino del Cid cycle route and the Camino o Ruta de la Lana, a trade route that transported wool from La Alcarria and cloth from Cuenca, honey and cereal to Medina del Campo and Burgos, and which today crosses the town until it reaches Mecerreyes (Burgos), being one of the points of passage for pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela. The rivers Rejas and Pentencilla also flow through here.

The fiestas of Matanza de Soria are held on the first weekend in September in honour of the Virgen de la Guía. San Juan is also celebrated (24 June).

It is popular among the Matancinos to roast chops in front of the wine cellars, accompanied by the good local wine that is kept inside.

Locals from Matanza de Soria: matanceros / matancinos, although they are also known as“garibaldis”.