Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: matamoro

The monastery was founded in 1200 by King Alfonso IX of León and King Berenguela of Castile by donating a place to the Cistercian Order for the construction of a monastery there. It was erected next to the pre-Romanesque church of San Salvador de Valdediós (see prev uploads). The construction of the church began in 1218 under the direction of the master Gualterius, possibly of Frankish origin, and was completed around 1225. The monastery became an important and well-endowed abbey. After a decline the monastery joined the Cistercian congregation in 1515. During the War of Independence, the monastery had to be abandoned from 1808 to 1812. It was dissolved in 1835, but some monks remained in the monastery, the last of whom died in 1862. Matamoro, St. James killing the Moors and so leading the Rconquista, is a very common icon on the peninsula.

A Celtic castle existed here, from which resistance against the Romans originated. The city was nevertheless taken. Afterward, it began to be built as a Roman city and became an important Roman military base. In the second half of the 5th century, Segovia became part of the Visigoth Empire. From the 8th to the 11th centuries, Segovia was under Moorish possession. In 1085 Alfonso VI conquered the city. From the 13th to the 15th century it was a royal residence. The predecessor of the Catedral de Segovia (aka "Santa Iglesia Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción y de San Frutos de Segovia" was a church that began around 1140 when Segovia was repopulated under Alfonso VII. This church was destroyed during a popular uprising in Castile in 1520. In 1525 the cathedral chapter decided to build a new building. The foundation stone was laid in 1525. In 1558 the building was completed up to the transept and was consecrated as a cathedral. It was erected in a late Gothic style, outdated elsewhere in Europe. In 1614 the large spire was destroyed by lightning. It was made of mahogany imported from America and covered with fire-gilded lead. The cathedral ceilings were also damaged by the fire. During a restoration around 1620, the tower was given its current shape, reduced by 12 m in height. The cathedral was finally consecrated in 1768. It is 105 m long and 50 m wide. The central nave is 33 m high. The tower measures 88 m. The baroque altar of the "Santiago Chapel" was created by Pedro de Bolduque in 1595. St. Jaques as "matamoro" is on top, while the legendary translation of the body from Pradon to Santiago is on the bottom.

Saint-Pierre was the church of one of the largest Augustinian abbeys in the Poitou, that was founded in 991 by Audéarde, the wife of viscount Herbert I of Thouars. The monastery was on one of the "chemins" of the Via Turonensis, so when the number of pilgrims increased, the Canons Regular of St. Augustine had this large church erected in two construction phases from the 12th century on. The western facade and the narthex are the youngest parts of the structure. When the era of the pilgrimage ended, the abbey declined and impoverished during the Hundred Years' War. Most conventual buildings were destroyed in the Wars of Religion. The abbey church now serves the parish. The very damaged horseman, probably vandalized during the French Revolution. Horsemen can often be found in the Poitou-Charente (eg. Melle, Benet, Surgères, Parthenay). It is widely believed that these equestrian sculptures depict Constantine the Great trampling down heathenism. In Southern France and Spain, St. James/St. Jaques is often seen in that pose, supporting the reconquista as "matamoro".

In 1080, when Morlaàs was in its heydays, the building of this church started by Centulle V, Viscount of Béarn, who had to make an atonement. Morlaàs developed to an important "étape" on the Via Tolosana at that time. As the church was dedicated to St. Foy there was a kind of "link" to Conques. Later the pilgrimage business declined, the viscounts moved away, wars arose.... The church burnt down in 1520, got severely damaged in 1569. During the French Revolution the church turned to a "Temple of Reason". The restorations of the 19th century saved the structure. Viollet-le-Duc, the influential "Inspecteur général des Edifices Diocésains" led the restoration of the portal, seen here. At all places, where he worked (eg "Carcasonne", "Vézelay"), he "recreated" and creatively "completed", what today is sometimes disputed. The perfect condition of the portal is a result of this restoration. The base of the trumeau has these two chained persons, who have the weight of the portal on their shoulders. The early pilgrims saw these sculpted figures as "moors" - in the context of the ongoing Reconquista. The pilgrimage to Santiago itself was seen in that context by many of them. Following the Via Tolosana, the pilgrims reached Oloron-Sainte-Marie just two days later. There is a very similar trumeau, "crowned" by St. Jaques in a "matamoro" pose.