Saint Jerome the Royal (in Spanish ''San Jerónimo el Real'') is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church from the early 16th-century in central

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

(

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

). The church, which has undergone numerous remodelings and restorations over the centuries is the remaining structure of the

Hieronymite The Hieronymites or Jeronimites, also formally known as the Order of Saint Jerome (; abbreviated OSH), is a Catholic cloistered religious order and a common name for several congregations of hermit monks living according to the Rule of Saint ...

monastery that once stood beside the royal palace of Buen Retiro, of which a portion now serves as the

Prado The Museo del Prado ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It houses collections of European art, dating from the 12th century to the early 20th century, based on ...

museum. Its proximity to the royal palace also underscores a connection to royalty, serving for centuries as the church used for the investiture of the

Prince of Asturias Prince or Princess of Asturias () is the main substantive title used by the heir apparent, or heir presumptive to the monarchy of Spain, Spanish Crown. According to the Spanish Constitution of 1978: The title originated in 1388, when King J ...

. In addition, a Mass to celebrate the investiture of King

Juan Carlos I Juan Carlos I (; Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 November 1975 until Abdication of Juan Carlos I, his abdic ...

was held here. In part, this link was cemented also because Madrid only completed its Cathedral of the Almudena in 1993. For many centuries, the Church of San Isidro served as a de facto cathedral, but while this church was associated with the patron saint of Madrid, St. Isidore was also the patron of manual laborers, not royalty, thereby relegating the role of royal chapel to this church.

History

The original

Hieronymites The Hieronymites or Jeronimites, also formally known as the Order of Saint Jerome (; abbreviated OSH), is a Catholic enclosed religious orders, cloistered religious order and a common name for several congregations of hermit monks living accordi ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

, the Monasterio de Santa María del Paso, had been built near the

Monte de El Pardo The Monte de El Pardo is a large forested area in Madrid, Spain, extending roughly across one quarter of the total municipal area. The Monte de El Pardo has an area of 15289.12 ha. It was already mentioned as hunting ground in the Alfonso XI's ...

, on the banks of the river Manzanares, during the reign of

Henry IV of Castile Henry IV of Castile (Spanish language, Castilian: ''Enrique IV''; 5 January 1425 – 11 December 1474), nicknamed the Impotent, was King of Kingdom of Castile, Castile and Kingdom of León, León and the last of the weak late-medieval kings of Ca ...

. However, due to the marshiness of the site, which caused much sickness among the monks, in 1502

Isabella I Isabella I (; 22 April 1451 – 26 November 1504), also called Isabella the Catholic (Spanish: ''Isabel la Católica''), was Queen of Castile and List of Leonese monarchs, León from 1474 until her death in 1504. She was also Queen of Aragon ...

granted the monks land on which to build a new monastery, which was built in

Isabelline Gothic The Isabelline style, also called the Isabelline Gothic (), or Castilian late Gothic, was the dominant architectural style of the Crown of Castile during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs, Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of A ...

style."Historia de San Jerónimo el Real".
Parroquia San Jerónimo el Real. Retrieved 30 March 2023. The church was chosen for the investiture of the Princes of

Asturias Asturias (; ; ) officially the Principality of Asturias, is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensive with the provinces of Spain, province of Asturias and contains some of the territory t ...

and future king Philip II on April 18, 1528. When King Philip II moved the Spanish court to Madrid in 1561, he had his retreat enlarged to become the

Palacio del Buen Retiro Buen Retiro Palace (Spanish: ''Palacio del Buen Retiro'') in Madrid was a large palace complex designed by the architect (c. 1590–1660) and built on the orders of Philip IV of Spain as a secondary residence and place of recreation (hence its ...

. He established a royal bedroom against the presbytery, such that he could hear mass from his bedroom. The Palacio del Buen Retiro was largely destroyed in the Napoleonic French occupation of Madrid. In 1808 the monks were expelled from the monastery and French troops were quartered in the monastery, causing major damage to the building, and the church was almost left in ruins.

Rehabilitations

The first major restoration was carried out during the reign of

Isabel II of Spain Isabella II (, María Isabel Luisa de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904) was Queen of Spain from 1833 until her deposition in 1868. She is the only queen regnant in the history of unified Spain. Isabella wa ...

, between 1848 and 1859, by the architect

Narciso Pascual Colomer Narciso Pascual Colomer, also known as Narciso Pascual y Colomer, (1808 in Madrid – 15 June 1870 in Lisbon) was a Spanish architect. He was one of the most important of the reign of Isabella II, an exponent of the late Neoclassicism and histor ...

, in the

style, who added some new elements, such as towers. The second restoration, 1879 to 1883, by

Enrique María Repullés Enrique María Repullés, (30 October 1845 in Madrid – 13 September 1922 in Madrid) was a Spanish architect. He was a member of the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando along with Narciso Pascual Colomer and Ricardo Velázquez Bosco. ...

, transformed the building into its current role as a parish church. Only a few external features remain of its original structure. The exterior remodeling of the nineteenth century in a

neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

style by Pontian Ponzano remains controversial. The stairway that faces the street, was constructed in 1906 on the occasion of the wedding of

King Alfonso XIII Alfonso XIII ( Spanish: ''Alfonso León Fernando María Jaime Isidro Pascual Antonio de Borbón y Habsburgo-Lorena''; French: ''Alphonse Léon Ferdinand Marie Jacques Isidore Pascal Antoine de Bourbon''; 17 May 1886 – 28 February 1941), also ...

to provide more impressive access to the church. For many decades, the

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 ...

cloister, designed by Lorenzo de San Nicolás, remained in disrepair. Finally, in 2007, an agreement between the church and the government led to the appropriation of the land for the cloister by the Prado Museum. The inner courtyard facade was dismantled, and then rebuilt as a cubic room, designed by

Rafael Moneo José Rafael Moneo Vallés (born 9 May 1937) is a Spanish architect. He won the Pritzker Prize for architecture in 1996, the RIBA Royal Gold Medal in 2003, and La Biennale's Golden Lion in 2021. Biography Born in Tudela, Spain, Moneo studi ...

in an expansion of the museum. The wing has been labeled the ''Cubo de Moneo'', (Moneo's Cube).

Interior

The church contains sculptures by Mariano Benlliure Gill, Juan Pascual de Mena’s 18th-century ''Cristo de la Buena Muerte'', and paintings by

Vincenzo Carducci Vincenzio Carduccio (in Spanish, sometimes ''Vicencio'' or Vicente Carducho; 1576 or 1578–1638) was an Italian painter who spent his career in Spain. Education and training He was born in Florence and was trained as a painter by hi ...

and

José Méndez José de la Caridad Méndez Báez (March 19,1887– October 31, 1928) was a Cuban professional baseball right-handed pitcher, shortstop, third baseman and manager in the Negro leagues. Born in Cárdenas, Matanzas, he died at age 43 in Havan ...

, neo-Gothic lamps and stained-glass windows.

Gallery

File:San-jeronimo-el-real-madrid-110321.jpg, Interior File:Madrid - Iglesia de San Jerónimo el Real 06.JPG, Head of gargoyle File:Madrid - Iglesia de San Jerónimo el Real 05.JPG, Detail of east facade.

References

External links