The Holy Priory Church Cathedral Basilica of the Military Orders of Our Lady Saint Mary of the Prado, also known as the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Prado for short, is located in

Ciudad Real Ciudad Real (, ) is a municipality of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha, capital of the province of Ciudad Real. It is the 5th most populated municipality in the region. It was founded as Villa Real in 1255 as a ro ...

, autonomous region of Castile-La Mancha, Spain. Construction began in the 15th century in Gothic style, although it has elements of late Romanesque, Renaissance and Baroque styles; it has undergone many restorations with the first remodelling credited to

Alfonso X Alfonso X (also known as the Wise, ; 23 November 1221 – 4 April 1284) was King of Castile, León and Galicia from 1 June 1252 until his death in 1284. During the election of 1257, a dissident faction chose him to be king of Germany on 1 Ap ...

(23 November 1221 – 4 April 1284) since the Romanesque period. It was completed in the mid 16th century after construction of the roof vaults. The tower was built in the early 19th century. Since 1875, it is the

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...

of four military orders of Spain ( Calatrava, Montesa,

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

and

Alcántara Alcántara () is a municipality in the province of Cáceres, Extremadura, Spain, on the Tagus, near Portugal. The toponym is from the Arabic word ''al-Qanṭarah'' (القنطرة) meaning "the bridge". History Archaeological findings have atte ...

). The structure is a monument indexed in the Spanish heritage register of

Bien de Interés Cultural (, , , ) is a category of the heritage register in Spain. The term is also used in Colombia and other Spanish-speaking countries. The term literally means a "good of cultural interest" ("goods" in the economic sense). It includes not only mater ...

History and architecture

The oldest part of the cathedral is the Door of Forgiveness (''Puerta del Perdón'') from the late 13th or early 14th century, which may have been reassembled later. It was probably the door of the primitive chapel which stood on the site of today's cathedral church. The cathedral was built in stages, combining the Gothic and

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

styles. The

apse In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical Vault (architecture), vault or semi-dome, also known as an ' ...

dates to the early 15th century, the eastern section of the nave is from 1514 while the remainder was completed ''c''. 1580. The cathedral consists principally of a huge nave, high, long and wide, the second largest in Spain after that of

Girona Cathedral The Cathedral of Saint Mary, (Catalan language, Catalan: ''Catedral de Santa Maria''), is a Catholic Church, Roman Catholic cathedral located in Girona, Catalonia, Spain. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Girona. The cathedral's in ...

. The Chapel of the Virgin and the

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christianity, Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is us ...

are in the 17th-century

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

style. The tower, rebuilt in 1825, has recently been restored."Catedral de Santa María del Prado"
Turismo de Castilla-La Mancha. Retrieved 31 August 2013. During the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

, the cathedral was used as a military garage. As a result, many of its treasures were stolen or destroyed. The architectural style of the Perdón doorway is in Gothic with Romanesque features while the Renaissance style is seen in the southern doorway; Perdón doorway is conjectured to belong to the reign of

. The tower built in the 19th century is in stone masonry and it is in four tiers.

Interior

The magnificent Baroque

altarpiece An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting or sculpture, ...

is the work of

Giraldo de Merlo Giraldo is a Spanish and Italian surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Alejandra Giraldo (born 1984), Colombian journalist, newscaster and social commentator * Andrés Giraldo (born 1989), a Colombian footballer * Blas Giraldo Reyes ...

and his son-in-law, the painter

Juan de Hasten ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of '' John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Philip ...

. The work was continued by the brothers Cristóbal and Pedro Ruiz Delvira who charged Juan de Villaseca to implement a design created by

Andrés de la Concha Andrés de Concha was a Spanish painter who is considered one of the best painters of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. De la Concha was born in Seville and came to the New World in 1568. He was an active painter from 1575 to 1612 and his work is pr ...

, completed in 1616. The altarpiece is dedicated to the Virgen of the Prado, the patron saint of Ciudad Real. The carved walnut pews are from the first half of the 18th century. The

Sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christianity, Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is us ...

has many paintings. There is also a chest of drawers made in a

style. The church of Santa Maria del Prado gained the status of cathedral by

papal bull A papal bull is a type of public decree, letters patent, or charter issued by the pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the leaden Seal (emblem), seal (''bulla (seal), bulla'') traditionally appended to authenticate it. History Papal ...

in 1981.

Restorations

*1967 - First restoration of the bells: bells recast, providing them with metal yokes *1983 - 1986 : Restoration of the tower *1987 - 1988 - Second restoration of the bells, recast and new mechanization *1992 - Third restoration of the bells: minor welding hood *1998 - 2002 - Restoration of the facades and the ceiling of the old sacristy *2001 - Restoration of the organ *2003 - 2004 - Restoration of the altarpiece *2009 - 2010 - Restoration of the Virgen del Prado Chapel

References

Bibliography

* * *Sainz Magaña, E., Herrera Maldonado, E. & Almarcha Nuñez-Herrador, E., ''Ciudad Real y su provincia'', Tomo III, Ed. Gever, Sevilla, 1997. .

External links

Santa Iglesia Prioral Basílica Catedral de las Ordenes Militares de Santa María Del Prado
. With many photographs. {{Cathedrals in Spain Churches in Castilla–La Mancha Bien de Interés Cultural landmarks in the Province of Ciudad Real

Tourist attractions in Castilla–La Mancha Romanesque architecture in Castilla–La Mancha Gothic architecture in Castilla–La Mancha Renaissance architecture in Castilla–La Mancha Baroque architecture in Castilla–La Mancha Roman Catholic churches completed in 1580 16th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Spain Buildings and structures in Ciudad Real