The Abbey of Santa María la Real de Las Huelgas is a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

Cistercian nuns Cistercian nuns are female members of the Cistercian Order, a religious order of the Catholic Church. History The Cistercian Order was initially a male order. Cistercian female monasteries began to appear by 1125. The first Cistercian monastery ...

located approximately 1.5 km west of the city of

Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populous municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of th ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The word , which usually refers to "labour strikes" in modern Spanish, refers in this case to land which had been left fallow. Historically, the monastery has been the site of many weddings of royal families, both foreign and Spanish, including that of

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots (Latin: Malleus Scotorum), was King of England from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he was Lord of Ireland, and from 1254 ...

to Eleanor of Castile in 1254, for example. The defensive tower of the abbey is also the birthplace of King

Peter of Castile Peter (; 30 August 133423 March 1369), called Peter the Cruel () or the Just (), was King of Castile and León from 1350 to 1369. Peter was the last ruler of the main branch of the House of Ivrea. He was excommunicated by Pope Urban V for h ...

History

On 2 January 1187, Pope Clement III issued a

papal bull A papal bull is a type of public decree, letters patent, or charter issued by the pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the leaden Seal (emblem), seal (''bulla (seal), bulla'') traditionally appended to authenticate it. History Papal ...

authorising the founding of a monastery dedicated to the Virgin Mary. In June of the same year,

Alfonso VIII of Castile Alfonso VIII (11 November 11555 October 1214), called the Noble (El Noble) or the one of Las Navas (el de las Navas), was King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. After having suffered a great defeat with his own army at Alarc ...

, at the behest of his wife, Eleanor of England, daughter of

Henry II of England Henry II () was King of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with the ...

and

Eleanor of Aquitaine Eleanor of Aquitaine ( or ; ; , or ; – 1 April 1204) was Duchess of Aquitaine from 1137 to 1204, Queen of France from 1137 to 1152 as the wife of King Louis VII, and Queen of England from 1154 to 1189 as the wife of King Henry II. As ...

granted the foundational charter stipulating that the monastery was to be governed by the

Cistercian Order The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

. Until the 16th century, it enjoyed many royal privileges granted to it by the king, including exemption from taxes, the lordship of many villages and territories (governed by the monastery's

abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa'') is the female superior of a community of nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic, Lutheran and Anglican abbeys, the mod ...

), and the possession of many of the royal families' valued personal items, most of them religious. It is even claimed that, until the

Council of Trent The Council of Trent (), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation at the time, it has been described as the "most ...

, the

was able to hear confession and give

absolution Absolution is a theological term for the forgiveness imparted by ordained Priest#Christianity, Christian priests and experienced by Penance#Christianity, Christian penitents. It is a universal feature of the historic churches of Christendom, alth ...

, like a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

. In 1199, the founders formally delivered the monastery to the nuns and added a clause pursuant to which the monastery was to be the burial place of the royal family. Constance, the youngest daughter of Alfonso, joined the Cistercians there. She was the first known as the Lady of Las Huelgas. This position was held as well by other women from the royal family, including her niece Constance and her grand-niece Berengaria, and maintained the close connection between the community and their royal patrons. Queen Eleanor and Queen Berengaria were both documented as supporting and being involved with the abbey. While members of the royal family were secular leaders of the monastery, abbesses such as Sancha Garcia were spiritual authorities. Alfonso VIII, who was himself to be buried at Las Huelgas, along with his wife, Eleanor, created the affiliated Royal Hospital, with all its dependencies, subject to the abbess. The hospital was founded to feed and care for the poor pilgrims along the

Camino de Santiago The Camino de Santiago (, ; ), or the Way of St. James in English, is a network of pilgrims' ways or pilgrimages leading to the shrine of the apostle James in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tra ...

. Donations made to sustain the hospital noted the key role that Eleanor played in its founding and maintenance, and she made many donations in honor of her deceased son

Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "courage" or "ready, prepared" related to Old High German "to risk, ventu ...

. A community of

lay brother Lay brother is a largely extinct term referring to religious brothers, particularly in the Catholic Church, who focused upon manual service and secular matters, and were distinguished from choir monks or friars in that they did not pray in choi ...

s developed to help the nuns in their care of the hospital's patients, who became known as the Brothers Hospitallers of Burgos. There were never more than a dozen of them, but they formed an independent

religious order A religious order is a subgroup within a larger confessional community with a distinctive high-religiosity lifestyle and clear membership. Religious orders often trace their lineage from revered teachers, venerate their Organizational founder, ...

in 1474. The Brothers survived as an order until 1587, when their order was suppressed and they were again placed under the authority of the abbess. The abbess of the monastery was, by the favor of the king, invested with almost royal prerogatives, and exercised an unlimited secular authority over more than fifty villages. Like secular lords, she held her own courts, in civil and criminal cases, and, like

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

s, she granted dimissorial letters for

ordination Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

, and issued licenses authorizing priests within the territory of her abbatial jurisdiction to hear confessions, to preach, and to engage in

pastoral care ''The Book of Pastoral Rule'' (Latin: ''Liber Regulae Pastoralis'', ''Regula Pastoralis'' or ''Cura Pastoralis'' — sometimes translated into English ''Pastoral Care'') is a treatise on the responsibilities of the clergy written by Pope Greg ...

. She was privileged also to confirm the abbesses of other monasteries, to impose censures, and to convoke

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

s. At a

general chapter A chapter ( or ') is one of several bodies of clergy in Catholic, Old Catholic, Anglican, and Nordic Lutheran churches or their gatherings. Name The name derives from the habit of convening monks or canons for the reading of a chapter o ...

of the Cistercians held in 1189, she was made Abbess General of the Order for the Kingdom of León and Castile, with the privilege of convoking annually a general chapter at Burgos. The abbess of Las Huelgas retained her ancient prerogatives up to the time of the

in the 16th century. Currently, the monastic community, which at present numbers 36, is part of the Spanish Congregation of St. Bernard, a reform movement of Cistercian nuns, which arose during the 16th and 17th centuries. Due to this, they are also commonly referred to as "Bernadines". The nuns of this Congregation would follow a more exact observance of the

Rule of St. Benedict The ''Rule of Saint Benedict'' () is a book of precepts written in Latin by Benedict of Nursia, St. Benedict of Nursia (c. AD 480–550) for monks living communally under the authority of an abbot. The spirit of Saint Benedict's Rule is summed up ...

than other Cistercian houses, with frequent and lengthy fasts, and celebrating the Divine Office about 2:00 A.M. The nuns support themselves through the decoration of

porcelain Porcelain (), also called china, is a ceramic material made by heating Industrial mineral, raw materials, generally including kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The greater strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to oth ...

items, making rosaries and providing laundry services for local hotels. This abbey has founded a daughter house in

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity, which is located in the agricultural Lurín District, on the outskirts of the

Lima Metropolitan Area The Lima Metropolitan Area (, also known as ''Lima Metropolitana'') is an area formed by the conurbation of the Peruvian provinces of Lima (the nation's capital) and Callao.Lima Metropolitana is formed by the Province of Lima and the Constituti ...

. The monastery has about ten professed nuns, and several candidates in various stages of formation. They support themselves by making cakes and jams, for which they use the produce of their own gardens.

Cultural heritage

The monastery is open to the public. Visits are administered not by the monastic community, but by the Spanish heritage organisation Patrimonio Nacional, which maintains the property as a Spanish royal site.

Textiles

The monastery houses the Museo de Ricas Telas, a showcase of medieval textiles taken from the many royal tombs in the convent.Barrigón, M. (2020). The creation of the major medieval textile museum in Spain: A history of the discovery, study and initial exhibition of the collection (1942−1949). ''Museum History Journal'', 13(2), 173–195. Also on display is the tapestry that covered the tent of the Almohad caliph Al Nasir, known to the Christians as Miramamolin. This tapestry was seized by the victorious Christians at the

Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa The Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, known in Islamic history as the Battle of Al-Uqab (), took place on 16 July 1212 and was an important turning point in the ''Reconquista'' and the Spain in the Middle Ages, medieval history of Spain. The Christian ...

on July 16, 1212. When

Sancho VII of Navarre Sancho VII (; 11577 April 1234) called the Strong (, ) was King of Navarre from 1194 until his death in 1234. He was the son and heir of Sancho VI, whom he followed as the second king to hold the title of ''King of Navarre''. Sancho VII was ...

's men drove through an enchained circle of African slaves guarding Miramamolin's tent, the caliph fled with great haste, leaving this tapestry along with several other prizes of war behind for the exultant Spanish.

Musical heritage

Las Huelgas preserves a 14th-century music manuscript, the Codex Las Huelgas. It contains monophonic and

polyphonic Polyphony ( ) is a type of musical texture consisting of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice ( monophony) or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords ...

music which is assumed to have been performed by the nuns. Some of the music is not found in any other source.

Burials

* Henry I of Castile * Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile *

Berengaria of Castile Berengaria (Castilian language, Castilian: ''Berenguela''), nicknamed the Great (Castilian: la Grande) (1179 or 1180 – 8 November 1246), was Queen of CastileThe full title was ''Regina Castelle et Toleti'' (Queen of Castile and Toledo). for ...

* Blanche of Portugal (1259–1321) * Eleanor of Castile (died 1244) *

Philip of Castile, Lord of Cabrera and Ribera Philip of Castile (Seville, 28 May 1292 – Madrid, April 1327), was an ''infante of Castile'', son of Sancho IV of Castile and María de Molina. He was Lord of Cabrera and Ribera and regent of his nephew Alfonso XI of Castile Alfonso XI ( ...

Peter of Castile, Lord of Cameros Peter of Castile, in Spanish Pedro de Castilla (1290 – 25 June 1319), was an ''infante'' of Castile, a younger son of King Sancho IV and his wife María de Molina. He held the lordships (''señoríos'') of Cameros, Almazán, Berlanga, ...

* Blanche of Castile (1319–75)

Old images

File:Monastery of Santa Maria la Real de las Huelgas Burgos 1842-1850 Villaamil.png, Monastery of Santa María la Real de las Huelgas by

Jenaro Pérez Villaamil Jenaro Pérez de Villaamil y d'Huguet (3 February 1807 – 5 June 1854) was a Spanish painter in the Romantic style who specialized in landscapes with figures and architectural scenes. He often inflated the scale of the buildings relative ...

and Louis-Julien Jacottet in 1842-1850. File:"Le Monastére de las Huelgas, près Burgos" (19936968475).jpg, ''Le Monastére de las Huelgas, près Burgos'' by

Gustave Doré Paul Gustave Louis Christophe Doré ( , , ; 6January 1832 – 23January 1883) was a French printmaker, illustrator, painter, comics artist, caricaturist, and sculptor. He is best known for his prolific output of wood-engravings illustrati ...

in 1874. File:Interior 1 of the chorus de Las Huelgas at Burgos 1842-1850 Villaamil Asselineau.jpg, Chorus's interior of Las Huelgas by

and Léon-Auguste Asselineau in 1850. File:Monasterio de las Huelgas, Festividad del Curpillos 1 jpg.jpg, View of the monastery during Fiesta of El Curpillos's celebration. Late-19th century.

References

Bibliography

* * * * *

External links

* Monasterio de las Huelga

Photos of Las Huelgas, its Royal Tombs and Cloisters
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abbey Of Santa Maria La Real De Las Huelgas 1187 establishments in Europe Buildings and structures completed in 1187 12th-century establishments in the Kingdom of León Christian monasteries established in the 1180s Roman Catholic churches in Burgos Santa Maria la Real de Las Huelgas Cistercian nunneries in Spain Historical Patrimony of Spain Medieval hospitals in Spain Organisations based in Spain with royal patronage Tourist attractions in Burgos Burial sites of the House of Burgundy Burial sites of the Anscarids Burial sites of the Castilian House of Burgundy Edward I of England Eleanor of Castile