Romanesque Churches of Northern Spain

There are hundreds of Romanesque churches in northern and central Spain, ranging in scale from modest village chapels to the monumental arch cathedral at Santiago de Compostela. Built between the 11th and 13th centuries, and in a few cases, as here in Segovia, a bit later, these churches are among the most impressive relics of medieval Europe. This video will explore a few representative examples. As the name suggests, the Romanesque style was inspired by Roman architecture, more specifically by the heavy bolts and arches characteristic of some Roman public buildings. The style originated in northern Italy, reaching Catalonia in the late 9th century. Here in Castile, however, Romanesque churches only began to be built in the 11th century, the monks of Cluny are the style across the Pyrenees from France. Only a few extant churches anywhere in Spain predate the arrival of Romanesque. One of these is the hermitage of Santa Maria de Lara. Though it's unclear when exactly the church was built, it seems to predate the Arab invasion, likely the 7th century. Only a fragment still survives. The rest was largely reconstructed in the early 20th century. Even from this, however, it's clear that in architecture, as in language, and so much else, the Visigoths adapted the customs of the Roman provinces they had conquered. The basilica had become the standard shape of Christian churches during the reign of Constantine, and the Visigoths continued to use the plan. What we have here is the apse and part of the transept of the original building. The foundations only of the nave survive. It was an austere structure, though very solidly built, with large and regular blocks. Almost in the hint of decoration are these bands of relief, stylized versions of Roman acampus. Inside the church, the triumphal arch over the altar is still preserved, flanked by two reused Roman columns. We have some nice examples of syncretism here in the reliefs above. Mary crowned by the moon, and there, on the other side, Christ in the guise of Apollo. As you can see, it was the Visigoths, not the Arabs, who introduced the horseshoe arch to Spain. And here, the site of the altar. As the Reconquista progressed, Spain's Christians began to sponsor increasingly grand and impressive churches, many influenced by the fashionable Romanesque style of France. An exceptionally well-preserved example is San Milan in Segovia. Built about a half-century after the king of Leon and Castile, we conquered the city in 1088. The church, dated to the early 12th century, has all the hallmarks of the Romanesque style. The heavy massing, the rounded arches over the windows and doors, the austere monumental symmetry. The severe effect is counterpointed by the busy sculpture over the entrances and on the corbels and capitals of the porch galleries. A closer look at the porch sculpture. The bell tower, older than the church, was likely built soon after the Christian conquest. Its horseshoe arches, though introduced, as we've seen, by the Visigoths, attest here to the influence of southern Spain's Islamic architecture. Perhaps the most remarkable of Segovia's other Romanesque churches is La Vera Cruz. This 12-sided structure, modeled on the rotunda of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, was built by crusading order, either the Knights Templar or, more likely, the Order of the Holy Sepulchre. It was completed, an inscription tells us, in 1208. As so often in Romanesque churches, the capitals of the central portal are richly decorated. Here in Leon, the center of medieval Spain's largest and most powerful kingdom, the most remarkable survivor from the Romanesque era is San Isidoro. Though extended and renovated in later centuries, it dates largely to the 12th century. The Romanesque doorway, with its impressively sculpted tympanum, is still intact. By the beginning of the 13th century, Romanesque was giving way to Gothic throughout central and northern Spain. As in the case of Romanesque, France was the primary source of inspiration. French architects designed most of Spain's great Gothic cathedrals, including the iconic example at Burgos, here in front of us. Begun in 1221, Burgos Cathedral was consecrated four decades later, though decorative work continued for centuries. The effect is profoundly different from any of the Spanish Romanesque churches that preceded it. But Gothic was an evolution, not a rejection, of the Romanesque. And like it, it emerged ultimately from the forms and inspiration of the classical world. For bonus points, a quick look at the crossing of Burgos Cathedral. Thanks for watching.