Iglesia de la Vera Cruz

This 12-sided church is the most interesting of Segovia's churches, and one of the best-preserved of its kind in Europe. Built in the early 13th century by the Knights Templar and based on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, it long housed what is said to be a piece of the Vera Cruz (True Cross), now in the nearby village church of Zamarramala (on view only at Easter). The curious two-storey chamber in the circular nave (the inner temple) is where the knights' secret rites took place and where they stood vigil over the holy relic. For fantastic views of the town and the Sierra de Guadarrama, walk uphill behind the church for approximately 1km.