Abbey of Santa Engracia
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The Abbey of Santa Engracia ( es, Real Monasterio de Santa Engracia) was a monastery in
Zaragoza Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributari ...
,
Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to sou ...
,
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
, established to house the
relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...
of
Saint Engratia Saint Engratia ( pt, Santa Engrácia, es, Santa Engracia) is venerated as a virgin martyr and saint. Tradition states that she was martyred with eighteen companions in 303 AD. She should not be confused with the 8th-century Spanish martyr of th ...
and the many martyrs of Saragossa. The date of 392 was traditionally claimed as a foundation date, which was linked with the travels of Saint Paulinus. The church was believed to have been sited on the spot of the martyrdom of Engratia. Today only the crypt and part of the façade remain and are preserved in the
Church of Santa Engracia de Zaragoza The Church of Santa Engracia de Zaragoza is a basilica church in Zaragoza, Spain. It was built on the spot where Saint Engratia and her companions were said to have been martyred in 303 AD. The Basilica of Santa Engracia is located at Plaza de S ...
. The monastery was ruined during the sieges (
1808 Events January–March * January 1 ** The importation of slaves into the United States is banned, as the 1807 Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves takes effect; African slaves continue to be imported into Cuba, and until the island ab ...
and
1809 Events January–March * January 5 – The Treaty of the Dardanelles, between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Ottoman Empire, is concluded. * January 10 – Peninsular War – French Marshal Jean ...
) by
Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
, that the
Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to sou ...
ese capital suffered in the
Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
. However, the upper cloister survived, but was demolished in 1836. The monastery was noted for its rich Isabelline and
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
architecture.


History

After the
Peace of Constantine The Edict of Milan ( la, Edictum Mediolanense; el, Διάταγμα τῶν Μεδιολάνων, ''Diatagma tōn Mediolanōn'') was the February 313 AD agreement to treat Christians benevolently within the Roman Empire.W. H. C. Frend, Fr ...
an abbey was built over the tomb in the cemetery of the Martyrs. There are some who attribute its foundation to Saint Paulinus during his pilgrimage to Zaragoza in 392. The monks may have initially followed the Rule of St. Augustine, before adopting the Benedictine Rule. The monastery flourished in 7th century; two illustrious prelates came from there: Eugenius II of Toledo and John of Zaragoza. Braulio of Zaragoza, succeeded his brother John and further supported and protected the abbey. The monks continued at the under Muslim rule. In the Synod of Jaca (1063), Bishop Paterno of Zaragoza, with express consent of its clergy, ceded to the bishopric of Huesca the monastery and church of Santa Engracia and Holy Mass. This was reiterated in a bull in 1121 by
Pope Gregory VII Pope Gregory VII ( la, Gregorius VII; 1015 – 25 May 1085), born Hildebrand of Sovana ( it, Ildebrando di Soana), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 22 April 1073 to his death in 1085. He is venerated as a saint ...
. As a diocesan establishment the position filled by a prior for four centuries, took the name of archdeacon. An excavation in 1389 discovered the bodies
Saint Engratia Saint Engratia ( pt, Santa Engrácia, es, Santa Engracia) is venerated as a virgin martyr and saint. Tradition states that she was martyred with eighteen companions in 303 AD. She should not be confused with the 8th-century Spanish martyr of th ...
and Lupercus, in two niches within a mound of stone with their names inscribed which may have been placed there by
Mozarabs The Mozarabs ( es, mozárabes ; pt, moçárabes ; ca, mossàrabs ; from ar, مستعرب, musta‘rab, lit=Arabized) is a modern historical term for the Iberian Christians, including Christianized Iberian Jews, who lived under Muslim rule in A ...
who re-buried them again. Devotion to the Saint Engratia increased as a result of the gratitude of King John II of Aragon "the Great" who attributed the healing of his cataracts to the miraculous nail of her martyrdom. He bequeathed to his son
Ferdinand II of Aragon Ferdinand II ( an, Ferrando; ca, Ferran; eu, Errando; it, Ferdinando; la, Ferdinandus; es, Fernando; 10 March 1452 – 23 January 1516), also called Ferdinand the Catholic (Spanish: ''el Católico''), was King of Aragon and Sardinia from ...
the obligation to restore the monastery. Ferdinand founded a monastery of Hieronymite monks there. In 1493, Saint Engratia's day when the monks took possession and the divine services were held in presence of Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. The building was restored around 1755 by Biscayan architect Juan Morlanes, work financed by the payment of 2,500 ducats of Don Clemente Sánchez de Orellana y Riofrío, a native from the city of
Quito Quito (; qu, Kitu), formally San Francisco de Quito, is the capital and largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its urban area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha. Quito is located in a valley o ...
, which corresponded to a price established by the award of the Vicecounty of Antizana of (''750 ducats'') and the Marquisate of Villa de Orellana of (''1,500 ducats'') With the course of time much of the Gothic building was renovated but the primitive and modern all perished on the night of August 14, 1808 as a result of the terrible explosions that shook Zaragoza as the hosts of
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
commenced a second siege.


Architecture

One of the most famous monuments of this church was the
altarpiece An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting o ...
and the chapel of the Vicechancellor of Aragon
Antonio Agustín Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan language, Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 40 ...
, father of the Archbishop of
Tarragona Tarragona (, ; Phoenician: ''Tarqon''; la, Tarraco) is a port city located in northeast Spain on the Costa Daurada by the Mediterranean Sea. Founded before the fifth century BC, it is the capital of the Province of Tarragona, and part of Tar ...
of the same name, which work was executed with great care by famous Berruguete. Collateral to the Agustin sepulcher was that of the famous writer and analyst
Jerónimo de Zurita Jerónimo (European Portuguese and Spanish) or Jerônimo (Brazilian Portuguese) may refer to: * Jerónimo (name), a given or surname, Jerome in English ** Jeronimo (singer) (born 1990), Dutch pop singer and actor * Jeronimo (band), German band of ...
, whose
epitaph An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...
read: ::HlERONlMO ZURITAE MlCHAELlS F. GABRIELIS N. CE- ::SAR -AUGUSTANO HISTORIAE ARAGONAE DILIGEN- ::TÍSIMO AC ELECTO SCRIPTORI. PATRI B. M. ::HIERONIMUS F. POSSUIT. VISIT ANNOS ::LXVII. MENSIS XI OBIIT CESARAUGSTAE III NON. NOVEMB. MDLXX. The
cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...
had a grand gallery consisting of large columns of marble and ornate sculptures and paintings by masters of great merit. Here was the sepulcher of the chronicler of Aragon, Jerónimo de Blancas, who died on December 11, 1590. The painting of the main altarpiece and other church paintings were by
Francisco Bayeu Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...
. All that remained was the famous façade of marble and alabaster whose Plateresque style appears to be work by Diego Morlanes, son of Juan, the original sculptor.


Gallery

File:1806-1820, Voyage pittoresque et historique de l'Espagne, tomo II, Vista exterior del convento de Santa Engracia (cropped).jpg, Monastery of Santa Engracia before the French Sieges, published in the work ''Voyage pittoresque et historique de l'Espagne'' File:Ruinas delpatio de Santa Engracia.jpg, ''Ruins of a courtyard of Santa Engracia'' (1808-1813) by Italian Fernando Brambila and Spanish Juan Gálvez in their work ''Ruins of Zaragoza'' (artist book focused on the buildings that were ruined after the city's Napoleonic sieges)


See also

*
Church of Santa Engracia de Zaragoza The Church of Santa Engracia de Zaragoza is a basilica church in Zaragoza, Spain. It was built on the spot where Saint Engratia and her companions were said to have been martyred in 303 AD. The Basilica of Santa Engracia is located at Plaza de S ...
* List of missing landmarks in Spain


Notes


References

* ''Guía de Zaragoza'', Vicente Andrés (editor and publisher), 1860 {{DEFAULTSORT:Abbey Of Santa Engracia
Santa Engracia Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...
Santa Engracia Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...
392 establishments Demolished buildings and structures in Zaragoza Isabelline architecture Buildings and structures in Spain demolished during the Peninsular War Former churches in Spain Buildings and structures demolished in 1836 Organisations based in Spain with royal patronage 4th-century establishments in Spain Establishments in Spain in the Roman era