Santa Maria in Monserrato degli Spagnoli
Encyclopedia
The Spanish National Church of Santiago and Montserrat, known as Church of Holy Mary in Monserrat of the Spaniards is a Roman Catholic titulus church and National Church in Rome
of Spain
, dedicated to the Virgin of Montserrat
. The current Cardinal Priest of the Titulus S. Mariae Hispanorum in Monte Serrato is Carlos Amigo Vallejo.
, which at the time was crumbling, and that of Santa Maria in Monserrato, which from medieval times had served and housed mainly indigent Spanish pilgrims to Rome. Many of the works from San Giacomo degli Spagnoli were also transferred to the latter.
and work proceeded over centuries under the direction, among others, of Bernardino Valperga and Francesco da Volterra
. The site was chosen in 1518, the façade by da Volterra being erected 1582-1593, the altar consecrated in 1594, and the roof finished in 1598. The apse was completed only in 1675, when a new main altar was consecrated. The external sculptural group (1673-1675) was executed by Giovanni Battista Contini. A complete renovation took place from 1818-1822.
The frescoes of Dormition of the Virgin (1683) over the main right central Chapel are by Francesco Nappi, while on the left is a Coronation of the Virgin (1627) by Giovanni Battista Ricci. In the niches above the lateral doors are statues of two Aragonese saints (1816), St. Isabel of Portugal and St. Peter Arbués, by the Aragonese sculptor Juan Adàn.
Dedicated to Saint Filippo and Saint Nicola, the first chapel to the right, built in 1590, contains a canvas of Saint Diego of Alcantara by Annibale Carracci
. To the right is a mausoleum (1889) of the Borgia
popes Calixtus III and Alexander VI, by Felipe Moratilla. Below is the now-empty cenotaph for the King of Spain, Alfonso XIII, whose remains were repatriated in 1980 and placed in the royal mortuary of the Escorial. On the left is the neoclassic monument (1862) completed by the Catalan sculptor Antonio Solà and José Vilches. The second chapel on the right has works by Francesco Nappi, including the Annunciation altarpiece and the wall frescoes of the Birth and Assumption of the Virgin. The tombs of Spanish ambassadors to Rome are below. The altarpiece of the third Chapel to the right depicting the Virgin of the Pilar (1789) was painted by Francisco Preciado de la Vega, The canvas of the Assumption (1551) was painted by Francesco da Città by Castello, while the Triumph of the Immaculate Conception (1663) was painted by Louis Cousin, also known as Luigi Primo
.
In the center of the presbytery's apse is the canvas of The Crucifixion (1564-1565), painted by Girolamo Siciolante da Sermoneta
.
The third Chapel to the left contains Jacopo Sansovino
's statue of the "St. James the Great" (patron of Spain), moved here in 1882. It had been commissioned by Cardinal Jaime Serra I Cau
(c. 1517) for his chapel in Santiago
, Spain. Nearby is the tomb of the bishops Alfonso de Paradinas and Juan de Fuensalida (1503) attributed to Andrea Bregno
. Ceded to Tomàs Gargall, bishop of Malta
, in 1614, the second chapel to the left is dedicated to the Virgin of Montserrat
and has a modern copy of this iconic image by Manuel Martì Cabrer. The lateral walls are frescoed with "the navigation of Saint Raymond of Peñafort" and an allegorical "Sacred mountain". The four evangelists on the arches and the frescoed scenes below scene attributed a Giovanni Battista Ricci. The 18th century stuccowork is by Francesco Bizzaccheri. In the first chapel to the left, the "Anne, Virgin, and Jesus" was sculpted in 1544 by Tommaso Boscoli. The right column has a Tabernacle of Saints attributed to the Milanese Luigi Capponi. On the right wall, the neoclassic monument to the former Spanish ambassador Josè Narciso Aparici Soler, who died in Rome in 1845.
The bust of Cardinal Pedro de Foix Montoya, a benefactor of the church, is one of the early works of Gian Lorenzo Bernini
, made in 1621 .
National churches in Rome
Charitable institutions attached to churches in Rome were founded right through the medieval period and included hospitals, hostels and others providing assistance to pilgrims to Rome from a certain "nation", which thus became these nations' national churches in Rome...
of Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, dedicated to the Virgin of Montserrat
Virgin of Montserrat
The Virgin of Montserrat is a statue of the Virgin Mary and infant Christ venerated at the Santa Maria de Montserrat monastery in the Montserrat mountain in Catalonia....
. The current Cardinal Priest of the Titulus S. Mariae Hispanorum in Monte Serrato is Carlos Amigo Vallejo.
History
The present church was founded in 1803-1807, by uniting the staff of two different churches, the 15th century church of San Giacomo degli Spagnoli in Piazza NavonaPiazza Navona
Piazza Navona is a city square in Rome, Italy. It is built on the site of the Stadium of Domitian, built in 1st century AD, and follows the form of the open space of the stadium. The ancient Romans came there to watch the agones , and hence it was known as 'Circus Agonalis'...
, which at the time was crumbling, and that of Santa Maria in Monserrato, which from medieval times had served and housed mainly indigent Spanish pilgrims to Rome. Many of the works from San Giacomo degli Spagnoli were also transferred to the latter.
Architecture
The church was initially designed by Antonio da Sangallo the YoungerAntonio da Sangallo the Younger
thumb|250px|The church of Santa Maria di Loreto near the [[Trajan's Market]] in [[Rome]], considered Sangallo's masterwork.thumb|250px|View of St. Patrick's Well in [[Orvieto]]....
and work proceeded over centuries under the direction, among others, of Bernardino Valperga and Francesco da Volterra
Francesco da Volterra
Francesco da Volterra was an Italian painter. He resided in Pisa from 1370–1372, where, from the records of the Campo Santo, he painted the History of Job on the south wall...
. The site was chosen in 1518, the façade by da Volterra being erected 1582-1593, the altar consecrated in 1594, and the roof finished in 1598. The apse was completed only in 1675, when a new main altar was consecrated. The external sculptural group (1673-1675) was executed by Giovanni Battista Contini. A complete renovation took place from 1818-1822.
Interior
Dedicated to Saint Filippo and Saint Nicola, the first chapel to the right, built in 1590, contains a canvas of Saint Diego of Alcantara by Annibale Carracci
Annibale Carracci
Annibale Carracci was an Italian Baroque painter.-Early career:Annibale Carracci was born in Bologna, and in all likelihood first apprenticed within his family...
. To the right is a mausoleum (1889) of the Borgia
Borgia
The Borgias, also known as the Borjas, Borjia, were a European Papal family of Italian and Spanish origin with the name stemming from the familial fief seat of Borja belonging to their Aragonese Lords; they became prominent during the Renaissance. The Borgias were patrons of the arts, and their...
popes Calixtus III and Alexander VI, by Felipe Moratilla. Below is the now-empty cenotaph for the King of Spain, Alfonso XIII, whose remains were repatriated in 1980 and placed in the royal mortuary of the Escorial. On the left is the neoclassic monument (1862) completed by the Catalan sculptor Antonio Solà and José Vilches. The second chapel on the right has works by Francesco Nappi, including the Annunciation altarpiece and the wall frescoes of the Birth and Assumption of the Virgin. The tombs of Spanish ambassadors to Rome are below. The altarpiece of the third Chapel to the right depicting the Virgin of the Pilar (1789) was painted by Francisco Preciado de la Vega, The canvas of the Assumption (1551) was painted by Francesco da Città by Castello, while the Triumph of the Immaculate Conception (1663) was painted by Louis Cousin, also known as Luigi Primo
Luigi Primo
Luis Primo was a Flemish painter of the Baroque period, active mainly in Rome, painting portraits and altarpieces.Primo was born at Brussels, and went when young to Rome, where he spent thirty years. He was also nicknamed Luigi Gentile on account of his gentle manners...
.
In the center of the presbytery's apse is the canvas of The Crucifixion (1564-1565), painted by Girolamo Siciolante da Sermoneta
Girolamo Siciolante da Sermoneta
Girolamo Siciolante da Sermoneta was an Italian Mannerist painter active in Rome in the mid 16th century.Native to Sermoneta, he was reputed to have been a pupil of Leonardo da Pistoia. His first known work is an altarpiece once in the Valvisciolo Abbey, now in Palazzo Caetani in Rome. In...
.
The third Chapel to the left contains Jacopo Sansovino
Jacopo Sansovino
Jacopo d'Antonio Sansovino was an Italian sculptor and architect, known best for his works around the Piazza San Marco in Venice. Andrea Palladio, in the Preface to his Quattro Libri was of the opinion that Sansovino's Biblioteca Marciana was the best building erected since Antiquity...
's statue of the "St. James the Great" (patron of Spain), moved here in 1882. It had been commissioned by Cardinal Jaime Serra I Cau
Jaime Serra I Cau
Jaume Serra i Cau was a Spanish Valencian cardinal, from the city of Valencia. He was tutor to the young Giovanni Borgia, and a close associate of his father Pope Alexander VI....
(c. 1517) for his chapel in Santiago
Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain.The city's Cathedral is the destination today, as it has been throughout history, of the important 9th century medieval pilgrimage route, the Way of St. James...
, Spain. Nearby is the tomb of the bishops Alfonso de Paradinas and Juan de Fuensalida (1503) attributed to Andrea Bregno
Andrea Bregno
Andrea di Cristoforo Bregno was an Italian sculptor and architect of the Early Renaissance who worked in Rome from the 1460s and died just as the High Renaissance was getting under way.-Early life:...
. Ceded to Tomàs Gargall, bishop of Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, in 1614, the second chapel to the left is dedicated to the Virgin of Montserrat
Virgin of Montserrat
The Virgin of Montserrat is a statue of the Virgin Mary and infant Christ venerated at the Santa Maria de Montserrat monastery in the Montserrat mountain in Catalonia....
and has a modern copy of this iconic image by Manuel Martì Cabrer. The lateral walls are frescoed with "the navigation of Saint Raymond of Peñafort" and an allegorical "Sacred mountain". The four evangelists on the arches and the frescoed scenes below scene attributed a Giovanni Battista Ricci. The 18th century stuccowork is by Francesco Bizzaccheri. In the first chapel to the left, the "Anne, Virgin, and Jesus" was sculpted in 1544 by Tommaso Boscoli. The right column has a Tabernacle of Saints attributed to the Milanese Luigi Capponi. On the right wall, the neoclassic monument to the former Spanish ambassador Josè Narciso Aparici Soler, who died in Rome in 1845.
The bust of Cardinal Pedro de Foix Montoya, a benefactor of the church, is one of the early works of Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Gian Lorenzo Bernini was an Italian artist who worked principally in Rome. He was the leading sculptor of his age and also a prominent architect...
, made in 1621 .
Cardinal-priests of Holy Mary in Monserrato of the Spaniards since 2003
- Carlos Amigo Vallejo (21 October 2003 - Present)