Initiated towards 1380 or 1383 under the oversight of Archbishop of Toledo
Pedro Tenorio, the bridge over the
Tagus was already built by 1388. Housing developed in the bridge's vicinity. The archbishop granted rights for the collection of the
tithe and the bridge toll to the newly born town, that otherwise also prospered thanks to the construction of
gristmills. Over the course of the 15th century and up until the
1492 expulsion, Villafranca de la Puente del Arzobispo (later El Puente del Arzobispo) hosted a small
Jewish community. Some of the forcibly exiled Jews (who had moved to
Portugal) soon returned as
conversos. In 1495 the local synagogue and adjoining communal property were confirmed by the
Crown as a grant to Pedro Sánchez de Valdemoro, who had earlier received them from Cardinal
Pedro González de Mendoza. == References ==