Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

Friars established Mission Nuestra Señora de la Purísima Concepción de Acuña (also Mission Concepción) in 1711 as Nuestra Señora de la Purísima Concepción de los Hainais in

East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that comprises most of 41 counties. It is primarily divided into Northeast and Southeast Texas. Most of the region con ...

. The mission was by the

Domingo Ramón Domingo Jesús Ramón Menargues (born March 10, 1958 in Crevillente, Alicante)Domingo Ramon< ...

- St. Denis expedition and was originally meant to be a base for converting the Hasinai to

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and teaching them what they needed to know to become Spanish citizens. The friars moved the mission in 1731 to

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

. After its relocation most of the people in the mission were

Pajalats The Pajalat were a Native American group who lived in the area just south of San Antonio, Texas, prior to the arrival of the Spanish to the region in the 18th century. Language The Pajalat spoke a dialect of the Coahuiltecan language. They spo ...

who spoke a Coahuiltecan language. Catholic Mass is still held at the mission every Sunday. On October 28, 1835, Mexican troops under Colonel Domingo de Ugartechea and Texian insurgents led by James Bowie and James Fannin fought the ''

Battle of Concepción The Battle of Concepción was fought on October 28, 1835, between Mexican troops under Colonel Domingo Ugartechea and Texian insurgents led by James Bowie and James Fannin. The 30-minute engagement, which historian J. R. Edmondson describes ...

'' here. Historian J.R. Edmondson describes the 30-minute engagement as "the first major engagement of the Texas Revolution." Mission Concepción is the oldest unrestored stone church in America. it was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

on April 15, 1970 and is part of San Antonio Missions National Historical Park. In 2015, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization designated Concepción and four other San Antonio missions, including

The Alamo The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Anto ...

, as a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

, the first in Texas and one of twenty-three such establishments in the United States. Mission Concepción consists of a

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a s ...

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-typ ...

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglic ...

o, and

granary A granary is a storehouse or room in a barn for threshed grain or animal feed. Ancient or primitive granaries are most often made of pottery. Granaries are often built above the ground to keep the stored food away from mice and other animal ...

. When originally built, brightly painted frescos decorated both the exterior and interior of the building. Traces of the frescoes still exist on the weathered facade of the building. Experts restored some of the artwork on the interior ceilings and walls of the convento in 1988. The Archdiocese of San Antonio completed another restoration of the mission's interior in 2010 which exposed more frescoes in the sanctuary and nave.

Gallery

File:Mission_Concepcion._1st_Mission._(8971699362).jpg, The church in 1892. File:Mission Concepción July 2017 01.jpg, The church in 2017. File:Mission Concepcion San Antonio 1.JPG, The area surrounding the mission. File:Mission Concepcion San Antonio Door.JPG, The portal to the church. File:Mission Concepcion San Antonio Interior.JPG, Interior of the church. File:Mission-Concepcion-stairwell.jpg, Stairwell adjacent to the church leading to the former Father President's office File:Mission Concepcion San Antonio Frescoe.JPG, Interior fresco upon the ceiling of the old library in the convento. File:Flickr - …trialsanderrors - Mission Concepción, San Antonio, Texas, axonometric view.jpg, Architectural drawing from HAER File:Mission Concepción July 2017 12 (grotto).jpg, The grotto in 2017.

Solar alignment

The western entrance to the church is aligned to the sunset in such a way that an "annual double solar illumination event" occurs every year on or around August 15, the feast day of the

Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it in 1950 in his apostolic constitution '' Munificentissimus Deus'' as follows: We proclaim and define it to be a dogma revealed by ...

.Note: The same solar alignment also occurs on or around April 27.

References

External links

San Antonio Missions National Historical ParkMission Conception parishMission Conception
entry at

Handbook of Texas Online The ''Handbook of Texas'' is a comprehensive encyclopedia of Texas geography, history, and historical persons published by the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). History The original ''Handbook'' was the brainchild of TSHA President Wal ...

* * {{authority control Concepcion San Antonio Missions National Historical Park San Antonio Missions (World Heritage Site) Buildings and structures in San Antonio Roman Catholic churches completed in the 1730s History of San Antonio National Register of Historic Places in San Antonio Properties of religious function on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas Historic American Buildings Survey in Texas 1716 establishments in Texas 1731 establishments in Texas Spanish Colonial architecture in Texas National Historic Landmarks in Texas 18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States

Gallery

Solar alignment

See also

References

External links