Convento de los Agustinos Recoletos (Madrid) facts for kids

The Convento de los Agustinos Recoletos in Madrid.

The Convento de los Agustinos Recoletos, also known as the Convento de Copacabana, was a large religious building in Madrid, Spain. Today, where it once stood, you can find important places like the National Library and the National Archaeological Museum. This convent gave its name to a famous street in Madrid, the Paseo de Recoletos. The name "Recoletos" comes from the Augustinian Recollects, who were the monks who owned the convent and the land around it. A famous painter named Francisco de Zurbarán was buried here.

History of the Convent

The convent was started in 1592. A princess named Doña Francisca de Guzmán gave the land in an area called Prado Viejo to the Augustinian Recollect monks. This was the fourth convent these monks had built in Spain.

At first, the monks used the houses that were already on the land. Then, in the early 1600s, they began building a new convent. The construction finished in 1620.

A plaque at the National Library of Spain's door, remembering the old convent.

Besides the land given by the princess, the monks bought more land and gardens nearby during the first half of the 1600s. This made the convent much larger.

The building work was led by Luis de Valladolid. Some people also believe that two monks from the order, Friar Juan de Nuestra Señora de la O and his son, Friar Lorenzo de San Nicolás, helped design the convent.

In 1837, a big change happened in Spain called the ecclesiastical confiscations of Mendizábal. This was when the government took away property from the church. The monks were forced to leave the convent, and the building was sold. Mendizábal himself bought it at an auction. Soon after, the convent was torn down.

What the Convent Looked Like

The Monastery Buildings

The convent had several buildings for the monks, like a dining hall (refectory), sleeping rooms (cells), and a place for sick monks (nursing). These buildings were built around two open courtyards. Large gardens stretched out around the entire area.

The Church Design

The main front of the church had five arches that served as entrances. Above these arches, there was a triangular top part with a round window in the middle.

The church itself had a typical design for Spanish Baroque architecture. It had a single main hall with side chapels that were almost like separate rooms.

One very important part was the Chapel of Our Lady of Copacabana. This chapel held a special statue of the Patron saint of Peru, which was brought by Friar Miguel de Aguirre in 1662. Unlike other chapels that were often used for burying important people, this one was a gathering place for the community. It became so important that it eventually gave the convent its second name: Convento de Copacabana. The outside of the chapel was decorated with paintings by famous artists like Francisco Herrera the Younger, Sebastián de Llanos y Valdés, and Juan de Arellano. Inside the Virgin's Chapel, there were works by Luca Giordano and Luisa Roldán, also known as La Roldana.

See also

In Spanish: Convento de Copacabana para niños