Santo Domingo Convent

The Duke also decided to build a convent for his protected Dominican friars, commissioning the traces to Fray Alberto de la Madre de Dios. The main façade of the church stands out with baroque elements; the coats of arms of the Dukes of Lerma and the image of the Saint founder of the Order of Preachers appear. It crowns a magnificent belfry, which supports the stork's nest. At the end of the summer of 1617 the construction of the convent of Santo Domingo was finished, which cost 20,000 ducats, and the Dominican friars moved to their new residence. Juan Gómez de Mora designed the main altarpiece; the bishop of Cuenca gave the first and third bodies, already made, and the carpenter of Lerma, Pedro García had to adapt them to Mora's project. Philip III visited it for the first time, accompanied by his sons, on the afternoon of Monday, October 16, 1617. Subsequently, the valuable orchard was fenced and the Duke of Lerma donated valuable ornaments and clothes to the community. After the Napoleonic invasion and after suffering a very serious fire in the 20th century, it was uninhabited by the friars; it was used as barracks and for many years as a High School, Vocational Training, Secondary School and Baccalaureate for Lerma and its region until December 2009. At present, it is a multipurpose complex of the City Council of Lerma.