| Church of Holy Mary in Monserrato of the Spaniards | |
|---|---|
| Santa Maria in Monserrato degli Spagnoli(in Italian) Santa María de Montserrat de los Españoles(in Spanish) S. Mariae Hispanorum in Monte Serrato(in Latin) | |
 Façade of the church of Holy Mary in Monserrato of the Spaniards,National Church in Rome ofSpain. | |
 Click on the map for a fullscreen view | |
| 41°53′45.40″N12°28′08.69″E / 41.8959444°N 12.4690806°E /41.8959444; 12.4690806 | |
| Location | Rome |
| Country | Italy |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Website | Official website |
| History | |
| Status | Rectory church, titular church, Spanish national church |
| Dedication | Our Lady of Montserrat |
| Consecrated | 1594 |
| Architecture | |
| Architect(s) | Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, Bernardino Valperga,Francesco da Volterra |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Style | Baroque |
| Completed | 1598 |
| Specifications | |
| Length | 40 metres (130 ft) |
| Width | 14 metres (46 ft) |
TheSpanish National Church of Santiago and Montserrat, known asChurch of Holy Mary in Monserrat of the Spaniards (Italian:Santa Maria in Monserrato degli Spagnoli,Spanish:Santa María de Montserrat de los Españoles,Latin:S. Mariae Hispanorum in Monte Serrato) is aRoman Catholictitulus church andNational Church in Rome ofSpain, dedicated to theVirgin of Montserrat. It is located in the RioneRegola, at the intersection of alleyway of Via della Barchetta and the narrow Via di Monserrato, with the facade on the latter street, about three blocks northwest of thePalazzo Farnese.
It was established as titular church in 2003. The current Cardinal Priest of theTitulus S. Mariae Hispanorum in Monte Serrato isJosé Cobo Cano.[1]
San Giacomo degli Spagnoli was erected in 1450 on the site of an earlier church. By 1506 it was the location of two hospices for Spanish pilgrims and the national church of theCrown of Castile in Rome.[2]
Santa Maria in Monserrato degli Spagnoli was founded in 1506 when the Brotherhood of the Virgin of Montserrat in Catalonia built a hospice for Spanish pilgrims.[3] It served as the national church and hospital for theAragonese community in Rome.
When Santa Maria in Monserrato degli Spagnoli was completed in the 17th century, the focus of the community shifted to that church. San Giacomo degli Spagnoli was in poor repair, and many of the furnishings and artworks were transferred to Santa Maria in Monserrato, which is now the Spanish national church. San Giacomo degli Spagnoli was later deconsecrated and the building sold to the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart.[4]
The church was built in 1518 according to designs byAntonio da Sangallo the Younger. Construction was interrupted due to lack of funds, but the work proceeded over centuries under the direction, among others, of Bernardino Valperga andFrancesco da Volterra. 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 to 1822; another restoration occurred in 1929.[5]
Thealtarpiece over the main altar isThe Crucifixion (1564-1565), byGirolamo Siciolante da Sermoneta. Funded byPrince Philip of Spain it was moved fromSan Giacomo degli Spagnoli.[6]
The three chapels on the right side were built between 1582 and 1588; those on the left between 1592 and 1594. The vault of the nave was erected between 1596 and 1598. That of the apse, between 1673 and 1675, under the direction of the Roman architect Giovanni Battista Contini. In the niches above the lateral doors are statues of two Aragonese saints (1816),St. Isabel of Portugal andSt. Peter Arbués, by the sculptor Juan Adán. The entire interior was renovated by Giuseppe Camporese between 1818 and 1821, when the high altar was also built. The high altar was consecrated in 1954.[7]
The first chapel on the right, dedicated toSan Diego de Alcalá, contains a burial plaque of CardinalBernardino Rocci (died 1599) on the pavement with his heraldic shield on the ceiling. The altarpiece depictingSan Diego di Alcantara was painted byAnnibale Carracci.[5] At the right is the mausoleum of two popes from the Spanish Borgia family,Callixtus III (1455-1458) andAlexander VI (1492-1503), sculpted by Felipe Moratilla, and completed only in 1889. The remains of both were transferred from the Vatican thanks to the permission granted by Pope Paul V. Below is the cenotaph of the deposed King of Spain,Alfonso XIII (died 1941), whose remains were repatriated in 1980 to the Pantheon of the Kings atEl Escorial.[7] On the left, high up, is the neo-classical, sepulchral monument of the sculptorAntonio Solá (1787-1861), made byJosé Vilches in 1862, and below the monument forFrancisco de Paula Mora, son of the Marchesi di Lugros, who died in Naples in 1842.
The second chapel on the right contains the burial plaque of the patron Gabriel Ferrer (died 1607), as well as his heraldic shield on the ceiling. The fresco of theDormition of the Virgin (1683) is byFrancesco Nappi,[5] as is theAnnunciation altarpiece. The sides have frescoes of theBirth of Mary andAssumption of Mary to Heaven. Two Spanish Ambassadors are buried here: Julián de Villalba (died 1843) and Salvador de Zea Bermúdez (died 1852). The four lunettes have angels with symbols alluding to the Virgin, and one lunette withMeeting of Mary and Elisabeth. Above the arches and pilasters are Marian symbols and the cupola has the image of St. Cecilia; the tympanum has aGod the Father.
The third chapel on the right is dedicated to theVirgen del Pilar.The rich polychrome marble decoration completed in the 18th century by Antonio Francés and Miguel de Cetina, based on designs by a canon from Barcelona,Francisco Gómez García, (died 1778). The altarpiece depicting Our Lady of the Pillar with St James and St Vincent Ferrer was painted byFrancisco Preciado de la Vega. At the right, anAssumption of Mary (1551) was painted by Francesco di Città di Castello while aTriumph of the Immaculate Conception (1663) on the left, was painted by Louis Cousin.
In the first chapel to the left, the statues ofAnne, Virgin, and Jesus was sculpted in 1544 byTommaso Boscoli. The right column has aTabernacle of Saints attributed to the Milanese Luigi Capponi. On the right wall, stands theNeoclassical monument to the former Spanish ambassadorJosé Narciso Aparici Soler, who died in Rome in 1845.
The second chapel on the left is dedicated to theVirgin of Montserrat, and has a modern copy of the image byManuel Martí Cabrer. The lateral walls are frescoed with theGlory of Saint Raymond of Peñafort and an allegoricalSacred mountain. The four evangelists on the arches and the frescoedCoronation of the Virgin (1627) are attributed toGiovanni Battista Ricci. The 18th century stuccowork is byCarlo Francesco Bizzaccheri.
The third chapel on the left is dedicated toSt. James the Great. The chapel was commissioned by the family of Francisco Robuster (died 1570). It contains a copy of the statue of St James byJacopo Sansovino, commissioned by CardinalJaume Serra i Cau (died 1517) for his chapel in San Giacomo degli Spagnoli.[8] The framing conch were added in the 19th century. The sepulchral monuments of Félix Aguirre (died 1832), José Álvarez Bouguel (1805-1830), and of the ambassador of Spain Antonio Vargas Laguna (died 1824) were completed byAntonio Solá. On the left is the tomb of Bishop Alfonso de Paradinas and on right, the tomb of the bishop of Terni, and secretary to Pope Alexander VI,Juan de Fuensalida (died 1498), both attributed to the work ofAndrea Bregno.
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