Romanesque churches in Madrid: Difference between revisions

The Romanesque churches in Madrid, are the buildings constructed between the 12th and 14th centuries that some still remain in Madrid. And as they are all Christian churches, it will begin by the radio of the ten parishes mentioned in the Fuero of Madrid of the year 1202. These were the churches of San Nicolás, San Pedro, Santa María, San Juan, San Justo, Santiago, San Salvador, San Miguel de la Sagra, San Miguel de los Octoes and San Andrés. Of these, only it see the top five: San Nicolás and San Pedro, as these are the only ones still standing, preserving elements from the original building; Santa María and San Juan, being exposed its remains, found in different archaeological excavations; and in the case of San Justo, for standing its apse existing annex to the temple that replaced, the Basílica Pontificia de San Miguel. To this list it add the Ermita de San Pelayo y San Isidoro, built in Ávila during the 12th century and its ruins it moved to Madrid in the late 19th century.

The temples are not dealing because it have demolished as San Miguel de la Sagra, by the year 1548; San Miguel de los Octoes, demolished in 1809; and San Salvador, demolished in 1842; or be replaced by new temples without there anything left of the original building, as is the case of Santiago, demolished in the 19th century and again raising of new factory as Church of Santiago and Church of San Juan Bautista. The San Andrés, although it still retain elements of the original factory, there are so many changes it has been succeeded by various modifications and reconstructions.

The Church of San Nicolás de los Servitas, also known as Parish of the Italians, is now, after the demolition in the 19th century of the Church of la Almudena (not to be confused with the current Almudena Cathedral), the oldest churches that have survived to this day from the medieval Madrid. Related to the Fuero of Madrid, in 1202, there are no known data on the date of construction and, having been heavily modified over the centuries, is currently made up of three naves of irregular shapes and elements from the various interventions carried out.

The San Pedro el Viejo is the second oldest medieval churches in Madrid and although its current location is from the 14th century, its age is even higher since, appearing in the Fuero of Madrid it can stablish it to least in the 12th century. The previous site might be, according to some sources, the Cava Baja and Calle del Nuncio, and according to others that further limit between the Cava Baja and Calle Almendros. Its current location over la Morería mosque, it occupied in 1345 to celebrate the Siege of Algeciras by King Alfonso XI of Castile. From that time it has still the current tower, built between 1345 and 1355 in Mudéjar style, being the temple a later work, and in the 15th century. Then were made various interventions over the centuries to this ancient church.

The Church of Santa María la Real de la Almudena, the oldest of the city, was demolished in 1868 during the works undertaken to enhance the Calle Bailén so that the road start next to the Royal Palace, as in the case of such street, was one of the best and longest in Madrid. This church occupied the same place as the old main mosque of Madrid, located next to the Islamic almudayna and, after the conquest of the city in 1085 by Alfonso VI of Castile, became a Christian church dedicated to the Virgin Mary, whose patronage of Almudena taking of the nearby citadel.

In one of the pillars of the Church it could read:

Is ancient tradition that the miraculous image of Our Lady of la Almudena was the main that was worshiped in Madrid brought it from Jerusalem by the Apostle James. In the loss of Spain the faithful of this city it hid in one of the hubs of the Walls, where it was 376 years. Returned Madrid through the prayers and fasting of devotees who had inherited the devotion of this holy image, not knowing where it was hidden, it fell miraculously the cube that had hidden in risk, where it appeared as uncorrupted the matter that is made as if it were carved that day again and is now with the same integrity.

,ref>"Siglos XII a XIV, Madrid Románico y Mudéjar" una Ventana desde Madrid

On the origins of the Christian church there are conflicting views on whether it used as church the old mosque, or whether it was demolished and in its place a new building was constructed. One way or another, it had several additions, alterations and reconstructions throughout its history, with remarkable that carried out in the 17th century with the intervention of Teodoro Ardemans and the carried out by the architect Ventura Rodríguez between 1777 and 1778, being the latter by was acquired the final aspect that would be overthrown less of a hundred years later and that it show represented in the model of the same existing in the Museo de San Isidro.

Of the early Church there is little that has survived to the present day, may include: a mural of Our Lady of la Flor de Lis, found in 1623 behind the reredos of the main altarpiece and now is in the Almudena Cathedral; a slab of a tomb of the 15th century, preserved in the National Archaeological Museum in Madrid; Some Romanesque capitals found during archaeological excavations in the surrounding area; and other remarkable remains.

The remains of the church of Santa María la Real de la Almudena appeared in 1998 during a works carried out in the calles Almudena and Mayor. In 2000, the Municipal Housing Company (EMV) carried out a project to enable exposure of such material, covering the remains with a glass roof and surrounding by a guardrail, allowing the vision thereof. Resting on the railing, appears the statue called “Vecino curioso”, a work in bronze by sculptor Salvador Hernández-Oliva.

In the model, it can see a plaque with a list of the visible remains of the temple: start of a curved apse of the 12th century; rectangular apse of the 17th century that held the camarín and in which inside was the pantheon of the Dukes of Pastrana and del Infantado; reforms of the apse and of the facade of the 18th century.

In the Plaza de Ramales, built in 1848, is the exhibition space with the remains of the Church of San Juan Bautista, existing in that location since the 12th century until its demolition in 1811. The space was built in 2003 and it comprises, among other elements, a glazed skylight with a ladder on its right where it can see the top of the south wall and part of the apse. The staircase leads to an underground car park and at the foot of it, on the right, a small museum space with various elements (ceramics, bones, etc.) found at the site, and was closed subsequently to have become an unexpected bath and public accommodation.

On the surface, the different colors of urban pavement draw the floor of the church, highlighting the banks that recreate the layout of the south wall and the forms of the curved apse.

Although by the Appendix to Fuero of Madrid of 1202 is known of its exist then, and certainly since at least the 12th century, the Church of San Juan Bautista, it was consecrated, and perhaps rebuilt in 1254 by the bishop of the Portuguese town of Silves. In fact, during the 17th century and together with the Church of San Pedro, were the only two churches consecrated of Madrid. The structure that presented after the presumed 13th century reconstruction is that of a temple with stone walls and a plant of three naves, differentiated from each other by pilasters and emphasizing the central by have a Main Chapel within a semicircular apse with the presbytery high relative to ground level from the rest of the temple. Inside, there were two altars, those for John the Baptist, in the Main Chapel and Saint Margaret, whose location is unknown. On the "Vistas de Viena" by Anton van den Wyngaerden, it can be seen in this building the presence of a bell tower of two bodies; the bottom is much higher than the upper, the latter being constituted by the bell. In both appear windows and the set is topped by a roof to four waters, surely of tiles.

The Santos Niños Justo y Pastor was other of the oldest parishes in Madrid, as evidenced the fact of appearing out in the Appendix of the Fuero of Madrid of 1202, but probably had been founded in the previous century. This temple and also disappeared from San Miguel de los Octoes (not to be confused with San Miguel de la Sagra) were located very close to each other, so to burn the latter during the fire originated in the Plaza Mayor in 1790 his parroshisity transfered to San Justo until it was restored. However, this intervention was not very deep and, given the state of ruin that had, was demolished in 1809, moving back again the parish to San Justo to then upheld in a chapel of the Calle Leganitos and end its trip in a Church of new factory, the Parish of San Miguel Arcángel, built in the Calle del General Ricardos.

Both temples, San Justo and San Miguel, were, as can be seen in old plans of the city, buildings of small dimensions both endowed with similar towers to those of San Nicolas and San Pedro el Viejo. San Miguel above it indicate how it ended; however, San Justo was demolished in the late 18th century to build in its place, between 1739 and 1754, the today Basílica Pontificia de San Miguel. The apse of the latter is oriented north, unlike the medieval churches and therefore the ancient temple of San Justo, where it was directed east. On the eastern side of the existing building (on the right as it look at the cover), on the Calle de la Pasa, it look at what at first sight could be considered an added chapel throughout its history; however, it is the old apse of the Church of Santos Niños Justo y Pastor.

According to the data, it is likely that the existing semicircular wall in the eastern side of the Basilica of San Miguel, at the height of the crossing, and in which inside are various offices and archives of the temple, it is actually the old apse the Church of San Justo, existing in 1202 and certainly raised earlier in the 12th century.

Children martyrs Justus and Pastor, of nine and seven respectively, were natives of Alcalá de Henares and were martyred during the reign of the Roman proconsul Dacian. After ordering he the idol worship, children were presented by confession of their faith in Christ, so they were first whipped and then on 6 August of the year 304, beheaded. Their remains are buried under the present Cathedral of Alcalá de Henares. Being both a religious saints very located in Spain and Southern France, the invocation of Saints Justus and Pastor was changed to that of Saint Michael, of worship throughout the Christian territory, to become Pontifical Church.

Bibliography

• Various authors under direction of Amparo Berlinches Acín: "Arquitectura de Madrid", COAM Foundation, ISBN: 84-88496-68-0; D.L.: M-50484-2003.
• Pedro F. García Gutiérrez and Agustín F. Martínez Carbajo: "Iglesias de Madrid", Editions La Librería, ISBN-13: 978-84-96470-48-4; D.L.: M-34219-2006.

- Ramón Guerra de la Vega: "Iglesias y Conventos del Antiguo Madrid", ISBN: 84-88271-12-3; D.L.: M-43866-1996. - Ramón Guerra de la Vega: "Madrid de los Austrias", ISBN: 84-398-1478-X; D.L.: M-16286-84. - José del Corral: "El Madrid de los Austrias", Publisher: El Avapies, S.A., ISBN: 84-86280-01-X; D.L.: M-40465-1983. - Jorge Jiménez Esteban: "El Mudéjar Madrileño", Editions La Librería, ISBN: 978-84-89411-81-4; D.L.: M-1125-2008.