Monasterio de Santa María de Gradefes
Key facts
- Type
- Monastery
- Religious order
- Cistercian
- Era
- 12th Century
- Architectural style
- Romanesque
- Founded
- 1168
- Current status
- Active
- Location
- Gradefes, León
- Province
- León
- Region
- Castilla y León
A 12th-century Cistercian nunnery near León, one of the oldest Cistercian communities for women in Spain. Its church features a remarkable Romanesque apse.
Highlights
- One of oldest Cistercian nunneries in Spain
- Romanesque apse architecture
- Active community for 850+ years
- Near the city of León
More Monasteries in Castilla y León
- Monasterio de Santo Domingo de Silos — Benedictine, 11th Century. World-famous for its Romanesque cloister with exquisitely carved capitals and for the Gregorian chant recordings by its Benedictine monks that became an international bestseller.
- Real Monasterio de las Huelgas — Cistercian, 12th Century. A royal Cistercian convent founded by Eleanor of England and Alfonso VIII of Castile. Its abbess held extraordinary powers, able to grant titles, hear confessions, and rule over fifty villages.
- Monasterio de San Pedro de Cardeña — Cistercian, 10th Century. The legendary monastery where El Cid left his wife Doña Jimena and daughters before riding into exile. One of the most important sites in Cidian legend and Castilian history.
- Santa María de Moreruela — Cistercian, 12th Century. The ruins of what was possibly the first Cistercian monastery in the Iberian Peninsula. Its apse with radiating chapels is unique in Spanish Cistercian architecture.
Explore nearby: Castilla y León guide · León province · Castles of León