Monasterio de Leyre
Key facts
- Type
- Monastery
- Religious order
- Benedictine
- Era
- 9th Century
- Architectural style
- Romanesque
- Founded
- 842
- Current status
- Active
- Location
- Yesa, Navarra
- Region
- Navarra
The spiritual cradle of the Kingdom of Navarra, with an extraordinary Romanesque crypt from the 11th century. The monastery overlooks the Yesa reservoir and the foothills of the Pyrenees.
Highlights
- Spiritual cradle of Navarra
- Exceptional 11th-century crypt
- Pantheon of early Navarrese kings
- Views over Yesa reservoir
- Gregorian chant recordings
More Monasteries in Navarra
- Monasterio de Irache — Benedictine, 10th Century. A Benedictine monastery on the Camino de Santiago, famous for its 'wine fountain' that offers free wine to passing pilgrims. Its Romanesque church dates to the 12th century.
- Monasterio de La Oliva — Cistercian, 12th Century. One of the earliest Cistercian foundations in the Iberian Peninsula, with a beautifully austere Romanesque-Gothic church and a 14th-century Gothic cloister.
- Monasterio de Fitero — Cistercian, 12th Century. The first Cistercian monastery in Spain, whose abbot Raimundo de Fitero founded the Order of Calatrava in 1158 to defend the frontier fortress of Calatrava from the Almohads.
- Monasterio de Iranzu — Cistercian, 12th Century. A beautifully restored Cistercian monastery hidden in a wooded gorge near Estella. Its austere Romanesque-Gothic cloister and church exemplify Cistercian architectural ideals.
Explore nearby: Navarra guide