San Benito el Real, Valladolid facts for kids
The Church of the Monastery of San Benito el Real is a special church and a former Benedictine monastery. You can find it in the city of Valladolid, in Castile and León, Spain.
Contents
History of the Church
This church was built where an old royal palace, the Royal Alcázar of Valladolid, once stood. It was first designed in the Gothic style. Later, in 1569, the front part (facade) was redesigned by Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón in a Renaissance style. It looks a bit like a gate with towers. The towers used to be much taller, but they were made shorter in the 1800s because people worried they might not be safe.
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The church was built from stone between 1499 and 1515. Juan de Arandia and García de Olave created the plans. It has three main sections inside, called naves, which end in three rounded areas. There is no central crossing section. The side sections are very tall, almost as high as the middle one. This makes the inside feel like one big open hall, which was a popular style in the early 1500s.
The church gets its light from large round windows. These windows are on one side and in the rounded end sections. There used to be more windows in the middle section, but they were covered up around 1580 when the roofs were made higher. A large choir area covers the three sections of the church.
The outside of the building has very thick walls made of limestone. This stone came from nearby quarries like Villanubla and Zaratán. The church also has big windows that let light into the large inside space. Strong supports, called buttresses, are on the side walls. They help hold up the arched ceilings inside. The columns that separate the naves are decorated. The parts of the church near the front have decorated tops and edges. Other parts do not, possibly to save money as the building work continued.
Inside the Church: Art and History
The Benedictine monks were very powerful, and this church was their main home in Castile. Because of this, the church had many beautiful artworks. These included a large altarpiece and special wooden seats called choir stalls in the main section.
The Choir Stalls
The choir stalls were carved in 1528 by Andrés de Nájera. They have both low and high seats. These stalls were used for important yearly meetings of Benedictine leaders from different monasteries in Castile. The backs of the high seats show pictures of saints. Each saint represented a Spanish Benedictine monastery. This helped each leader find their own special seat. The style of these stalls is called Plateresque. This was a new style in Spain, inspired by art from Italy. Some of the decorations look like paintings found in ancient Roman buildings. The images of the saints were also different from older Gothic styles.
The Iron Grille
In 1571, a large iron screen, called a grille, was put up. It covered all three sections of the church. This grille divided the church into two parts. The front part was for regular people, and the back part, near the altar, was for the monks. This high-quality grille was made by Tomás Celma.
Changes Over Time
The church once held many other valuable artworks, like small altars, tombs, and organs. However, in 1835, during a time called the Ecclesiastical Confiscation of Mendizábal, the monastery became a fort and army barracks. The church was no longer used for religious services. Many of its artworks were taken away. Luckily, the choir stalls stayed, and the main altarpiece was moved to the National Sculpture Museum in Valladolid. The iron grille also remained and was not damaged.
By the mid-1800s, many people wanted the church to reopen. It finally did in 1892, managed by a group called the Venerable Third Order of the Carmel. Since 1897, the Order of the Barefoot Carmelite monks have taken care of the church. In 1922, a new Baroque-style altarpiece was put in. It came from a church in the town of Portillo.
Next to the church is the monastery building. It has three courtyards, one of which is now a modern art museum called Patio Herreriano. The main front of the monastery building was designed by Juan Ribero de Rada in a style called Mannerism.
Today, the leader of the convent is Juan Jesús Sánchez Sánchez. He comes from the Carmelite Convent in Medina del Campo.
Artworks at the National Sculpture Museum
Some parts of the monastery's original altarpiece are now kept at the National Sculpture Museum in Valladolid. Other parts were lost or destroyed during the Confiscation. This altarpiece was created by Alonso Berruguete between 1526 and 1532.
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A carved part of the altarpiece
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Three wooden figures by Alonso de Berruguete
See also
In Spanish: Iglesia del monasterio de San Benito el Real para niños
