FRANCISCAN ROUTE

Tradition has it that Saint Francis visited Ciudad Rodrigo in 1214, staying at the convent of San Gil. Upon his return to Italy, he sent two Franciscan friars to Ciudad Rodrigo to found a convent on the very site where the convent in which he had stayed during his time in the city had been located. It was a large building; today, all that remains are the Centenos and Águilas chapels (for which the marvelous Calvary sculpture was created—a work by Juan de Juni that is currently housed in the National Sculpture Museum in Valladolid).

A Romanesque church notable for its two doorways from that period.

The Convent of the Poor Clares is the oldest in Ciudad Rodrigo; it was founded in the 12th century and dedicated to the Holy Spirit (Convent of Sancti Spíritus), although it was renovated in the 16th century and largely rebuilt in the 18th century.

The Third Order of St. Francis for laypeople held its meetings and celebrations at various locations until, finally, in 1789, it secured its own space when the monks of San Juan ceded to them the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which belonged to their commandery. Given the poor condition of the building, they erected a new church on the same site, designed by Juan de Sagarvinaga and built by Ventura Muiños. Built in the Neoclassical style, its most striking feature is the façade, with a portico in which six Doric columns flank the semicircular archway. Above them runs a frieze with triglyphs and metopes and a solid section featuring the coats of arms of the Franciscan Order, the Order of St. John with the cross, and St. Louis, King of France—patron saint of the Order—with the fleur-de-lis. The façade is enlivened by an oculus and a niche containing a statue of the saint. It is crowned by a double bell gable.

In Ciudad Rodrigo, the former Convent of the Barefoot Franciscan Nuns embodies centuries of history and changes in use that catch the attention of those strolling through Cristóbal de Castillejo Square. Some travelers recall that a medieval Episcopal Palace once stood on this site and that, after its demolition, the current convent was built in 1739, spearheaded by Bishop Fray Gregorio Téllez and linked to the family of the Marquis of Cerralbo. Over time, the building has served many purposes: as an artillery barracks during the War of Independence, as a prison, and, finally, as a retirement home.

The Cathedral of Our Lady of Santa María was begun as a fortress-church in the 12th century and completed in the Gothic style in the following century. The 18th-century Bell Tower still bears the scars left by the War of Independence. Notable are the richness and variety of the arches and sculptures, both on the cathedral’s entrance portals and on the interior vaults. Also noteworthy is the choir, carved from walnut wood by the workshop of Rodrigo Alemán. The cloister features rich Gothic tracery and abundant figurative and plant-based decoration; however, not all of it is original, as in 1911, J. Tarabella made drastic alterations to the cloister’s sculptural work. The western and southern wings are the oldest, dating from the 14th century, while the other two were built between 1526 and 1539.