The Church of San Ildefonso (Spanish: ''Iglesia de San Ildefonso'') is a Baroque style church located in the historic center of the city of

Toledo Toledo most commonly refers to: * Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain * Province of Toledo, Spain * Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States Toledo may also refer to: Places Belize * Toledo District * Toledo Settlement Bolivia * Toledo, Orur ...

, in Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It is also known as the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

church and is consecrated to Saint Ildefonso of Toledo, patron of the city and Father of the Church.

Construction

Its construction took more than 100 years. Work began in 1629 on lands acquired by the Jesuits of Toledo in 1569. The location hosted the houses of Juan Hurtado de Mendoza Rojas y Guzmán, count of Orgaz. It was the birthplace of

Saint Ildefonsus In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Ortho ...

. Pedro and Estefanía Manrique, high Castilian nobility's members, were the promoters of the erection of the temple, as it was written in the founding documents: Iglesia de San Ildefonso - 01

Its approach followed the example of the Jesuit churches of Palencia and

Alcalá de Henares Alcalá de Henares () is a Spanish city in the Community of Madrid. Straddling the Henares River, it is located to the northeast of the centre of Madrid. , it has a population of 193,751, making it the region's third-most populated Municipalities ...

and that of the Church of the Gesù, in Rome. It is the main church of the Company of Jesus. This trace has been attributed to Jan Bautista Monegro, at that time the master of the Cathedral. Jesuit architect Pedro Sánchez, a Jesuit brother, was in charge of the construction of the temple. Sánchez died in 1633 and was replaced by another companion of his order,

Francisco Bautista Francisco Bautista (born September 17, 1972 in Contla de Juan Cuamatzi, Tlaxcala) is a Mexican long-distance runner. He represented his native country at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, PR China, where he finished in 66th place in the men's ...

, who built the facade and

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular architecture, for ex ...

in Baroque style. In 1669, Bautista left his place to Bartolomé Zumbigo, native architect of Toledo, who finished the towers and the facade. San Ildefonso was consecrated in 1718, although the sacristy, the main chapel and the octave, which contains the

reliquary A reliquary (also referred to as a ''shrine'', by the French term ''châsse'', and historically including ''wikt:phylactery, phylacteries'') is a container for relics. A portable reliquary may be called a ''fereter'', and a chapel in which it i ...

were incomplete. In 1765, the temple was finally completed under the direction of Jose Hernandez Sierra, architect of Salamanca. Unfortunately for the order of the Jesuits, only two years after the expulsion from Spain by order of king

Charles III of Spain it, Carlo Sebastiano di Borbone e Farnese , house = Bourbon-Anjou , father = Philip V of Spain , mother = Elisabeth Farnese , birth_date = 20 January 1716 , birth_place = Royal Alcazar of Madrid, Spain , death_d ...

under the charge of instigating the Esquilache Riots, which had taken place in 1766. The Company of Jesus did not recover the church until the twentieth century.

References

External links

Description of Iglesia de San Ildefonso in toledomonumental.com
(in Spanish)
Iglesia de San Ildefonso, Turismo de Toledo
(in English) {{Coord, 39.8581, N, 4.0261, W, source:wikidata, display=title Baroque architecture in Castilla–La Mancha Roman Catholic churches completed in 1765 Bien de Interés Cultural landmarks in the City of Toledo Roman Catholic churches in Toledo, Spain Society of Jesus 18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Spain

Construction

See also

References

External links