Church sights in Madrid
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A
Basílica de San Francisco El Grande
Lording it over the southwestern corner of La Latina, this imposing and recently restored baroque basilica is one of Madrid’s grandest old churches. Its extravagantly frescoed dome is, by some estimates, the largest in Spain and the fourth largest in the world, with a height of 56m and diameter of 33m.
Legend has it that St Francis of Assisi built a chapel on this site in 1217. The current version was designed by Francesco Sabatini, who also designed the Puerta de Alcalá and finished off the Palacio Real. He designed the church with an unusual floor plan: the nave is circular and surrounded by chapels guarded by imposing marble statues of the 12 apostles; 12 prophets,…
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B
Iglesia de San Ginés
Due north of Plaza Mayor, San Ginés is one of Madrid’s oldest churches: it has been here in one form or another since at least the 14th century. It is speculated that, prior to the arrival of the Christians in 1085, a Mozarabic community (Christians in Muslim territory) lived around the stream that later became Calle del Arenal and that their parish church stood on this site. What you see today was built in 1645 but largely reconstructed after a fire in 1824. The church houses some fine paintings, including El Greco’s Expulsion of the Moneychangers from the Temple (1614), which is beautifully displayed; the glass is just 6mm from the canvas to avoid reflections. The…
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C
Basílica de San Miguel
Hidden away off Calle de Segovia, this basilica is something of a surprise. Its convex, late-baroque facade sits in harmony with the surrounding buildings of old Madrid. Among its fine features are statues representing the four virtues, and the reliefs of Justo and Pastor, the saints to whom the church was originally dedicated. The rococo and Italianate interior, completed by Italian architects in 1745, is another world altogether with gilded flourishes and dark, sombre domes.
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D
Iglesia de San Jerónimo El Real
Tucked away behind the Museo del Prado, this chapel was traditionally favoured by the Spanish royal family, and King Juan Carlos I was crowned here in 1975 upon the death of Franco. The sometimes-sober, sometimes-splendid mock-Isabelline interior is actually a 19th-century reconstruction that took its cues from the Iglesia de San Juan de los Reyes in Toledo; the original was largely destroyed during the Peninsular War. What remained of the former cloisters has been incorporated into the Museo del Prado.
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E
Iglesia de San Nicolás de los Servitas
Tucked away up the hill from Calle Mayor, this intimate little church is Madrid’s oldest surviving building of worship. It is believed to have been built on the site of Muslim Mayrit’s second mosque. The most striking feature is the restored 12th-century Mudéjar bell tower, although much of the remainder dates in part from the 15th century. The vaulting is late Gothic while the fine timber ceiling, which survived a fire in 1936, dates from about the same period. Despite plateresque and baroque touches, much of the interior is a study in simplicity. The architect Juan de Herrera, one of the great architects of Renaissance Spain, was buried in the crypt in 1597.
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F
Iglesia de San Andrés
One of the most important churches of old Madrid, the Iglesia de San Andrés is notable for its extraordinary baroque altar, columns flecked with gold leaf, and sculpted cherubic fantasies adorning the dome. The façade is at its best when illuminated by night as a backdrop for local café life.
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G
Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Buen Consejo
Towering above the northern end of bustling Calle de Toledo, and visible through the arches from Plaza Mayor, this imposing church long served as the city’s de facto cathedral until Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Almudena was completed in 1992.
Still known to locals as the Catedral de San Isidro, the austere baroque basilica was founded in the 17th century as the headquarters for the Jesuits and is today home to the remains of the city’s main patron saint, San Isidro (in the third chapel on your left after you walk in). His body, apparently remarkably well preserved, is only removed from here on rare occasions, such as in 1896 and 1947 when he was paraded about town…
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H
Iglesia de San Pedro El Viejo
This fine old church is one of the few remaining windows on post-Muslim Madrid, most notably its clearly Mudéjar (a Moorish architectural style) brick bell tower, which dates from the 14th century. The church is generally closed to the public, but it’s arguably more impressive from the outside; the Renaissance doorway has stood since 1525. If you can peek inside, the nave dates from the 15th century, although the interior largely owes its appearance to 17th-century renovations. Along with the Iglesia de San Nicolás de los Servitas, the Iglesia de San Pedro El Viejo is one of very few sites where traces of Mudéjar Madrid remain in situ. Otherwise, you need to visit …
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