The Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales 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 ...

located in

Valladolid Valladolid ( ; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and ''de facto'' capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the pr ...

, in

Castile and León Castile and León is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwestern Spain. Castile and León is the largest autonomous community in Spain by area, covering 94,222 km2. It is, however, sparsely populated, with a pop ...

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 ...

. Literally the Monastery of the Barefoot Royals, the name refers to the practice of the usage of the Colettine branch of the

Order of St. Clare The Poor Clares, officially the Order of Saint Clare (Latin language, Latin: ''Ordo Sanctae Clarae''), originally referred to as the Order of Poor Ladies, and also known as the Clarisses or Clarissines, the Minoresses, the Franciscan Clarist Or ...

to be barefoot while within the cloister. This monastery is to be distinguished from a similarly named one in Madrid of the same Order (see

Convent of Las Descalzas Reales The Convent of Las Descalzas Reales () is a royal monastery situated in Madrid, Spain, administered by the Patrimonio Nacional. History The ''Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales'', literally the "Monastery of the Royal Discalced", resides in ...

). The monastery was originally established in Villalcázar de Sirga in 1550 and was dedicated to Our Lady of Pity. It has been based in Valladolid since 1552, when the community moved to its permanent home, and its dedication was changed to

Our Lady of the Assumption The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution as follows: It leaves open the question of whether Mary died or whether she was ra ...

by order of King

Philip III of Spain Philip III (; 14 April 1578 – 31 March 1621) was King of Spain and King of Portugal, Portugal (where he is known as Philip II of Portugal) during the Iberian Union. His reign lasted from 1598 until his death in 1621. He held dominion over the S ...

, who also initiated a rebuilding program. The monastery occupies a spacious site in the city, between calle de Ramón y Cajal (in front of the Chancillería), at the corner of calle de San Martín and calle del Prado. Its present building is in 17th-century neo-classical style to designs by

Francisco de Mora Francisco de Mora (c.1553–1610) was a Spanish Renaissance architect. Life Mora was born in Cuenca, Spain, Cuenca, and baptized in the parish of Santa Cruz on August 15, 1552. He was an uncle of the humanist Baltasar Porreño. His father h ...

History

The community of this convent belongs to the Order of the Barefoot Franciscans of St. Clare, Lady of Mercy. The foundation took place in 1550, in Villalcázar de Sirga (Palencia), also known as Villasirga. Two years later the community moved to Valladolid with the help of its patron and protector, the Count of Oscorno. He was in charge of providing the convent with a home in Puerta del Campo, in the hope of definitively occupying the area in front of the chancellery. ''The Book of Nuns and Monks'' attests to this:

''Sister Mariana de Jesús, who was abbess in this convent ..professed ..in Santa Clara de Gandia ..came to Rioja as foundress and was in that convent ..from there she came to the convent of Villasirga, which was the same one that is now in Valladolid, which the Counts of Osorno, who were patrons, brought and transferred to this city''

In order to house the community in the chancellery, so that the nuns could continue with the monastic life, it was necessary to buy out various nobles' houses. In 1552, Fadrique Osorio of Toledo and his wife, Inés de Pimentel, Marquess of Villafranca, bought for the convent the Palace of Alonso de Argüello (secretary to the Majesty), the houses licensed to Galarza (of the council to His Majesty), and those licensed to Ortiz (professor of the

University of Valladolid The University of Valladolid is a public university located in the city of Valladolid, Valladolid province, autonomous region of Castile and Leon, Spain. Established in the 13th century, it is one of the oldest universities in the world. The ...

). All of these buildings were perfectly suited to life in a convent. In 1595 the patronage of the convent changed to Francisco Enríquez de Almansa ( knight of Santiago and Gentleman of His Majesty's MouthThe Gentleman of the Mouth was the head of everything related to the kitchen and food of the royal family.) together with his wife Mariana de Zúñiga y Velasco. They pledged to build a new church and a building that was adequate to be used as a monastery, and to pay an annual rent of 200 maravedíes, in exchange for acquiring the main chapel for his burial and that of his family.

Conservation

The complex, which still survives, consists of a church, a cloister, a courtyard, outbuildings and a garden. In 2007 it was home to 13

Colettine Poor Clares The Colettine Poor Clares are a reform branch of the Order of St. Clare, founded by Clare of Assisi in Italy in 1211. They follow the interpretation of the Rule of St. Clare established in 1410 by Saint Colette, originally a French hermit and mem ...

, financed by an industrial laundry within the monastery. It has been a National Monument since 1974.

References

External links

* Varios autores. ''Guía de arquitectura de Valladolid''. Editorial Consorcio IV Centenario de la Ciudad de Valladolid, 1996. * Juan José Martín González. Francisco Javier de la Plaza Santiago. ''Monumentos religiosos de la ciudad de Valladolid'', parte segunda. Catálogo monumental. Editorial Diputación de Valladolid, edición facsímil 2001. * Folleto explicativo de la exposición «Descalzas Reales: El legado de la Toscana» * Bustamante García, Agustín . ''La arquitectura clasicista del foco vallisoletano (1561-1640)'', Valladolid 1983. Institución Cultural Simancas. {{Authority control Poor Clare monasteries in Spain Roman Catholic churches in Valladolid Christian monasteries established in the 16th century 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Spain Monasteries in Castile and León Convents in Spain Bien de Interés Cultural landmarks in the Province of Valladolid