Alcalá de Henares

The Colegio Mayor de San Ildefonso is an architectural and cultural landmark that transports us to the heart of the Spanish Renaissance. Founded in 1499 by Cardinal Cisneros as the nucleus of the University of Alcalá de Henares, this emblematic building has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Cardinal Cisneros' vision was to create a higher education centre that would rival the best European universities. Thanks to the papal bull of 1499, the foundation of the College was authorized and the foundations were laid for what would become one of the most prestigious educational institutions of its time.

The construction of the Colegio Mayor began at the beginning of the 16th century under the direction of Pedro Gumiel, who counted on the collaboration of prominent architects and craftsmen. The main façade, the work of Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón, is a magnificent example of the Plateresque style, with a rich sculptural decoration that reflects the influence of the Italian Renaissance.

The interior of the building houses such emblematic spaces as the Paranymph, where the most solemn academic events were held and where the Cervantes Prize is awarded today, and the main courtyard of Escuelas or Santo Tomás de Villanueva, designed by Juan Gómez de Mora, which is the most majestic of the Complutense cloisters. The Chapel of Saint Ildefonsus is another of the College's treasures, with its rich Mudejar plasterwork and its coffered ceilings, which offer us a sample of the religious art of the period. The remains of Francisco Vallés de Covarrubias and Elio Antonio de Nebrija rest there. It also has the magnificent sepulchral monument dedicated to Cardinal Cisneros, the work of Domenico Fancelli and Bartolomé Ordóñez.

The Colegio Mayor de San Ildefonso is not only an architectural monument, but also a symbol of knowledge and culture. Its foundation marked a milestone in the history of education in Spain and its influence extends to the present day.

Located in the heart of Alcalá de Henares’ historic center, in the Plaza de los Santos Niños, stands the Magistral Cathedral of Saints Justus and Pastor. As the mother church of the Diocese of Alcalá (the Complutensian diocese) and one of the most unique temples in the Community of Madrid, its location marks the ancient urban, political, and social heart of the medieval city.

The cathedral is built upon the site where, according to tradition, the children Justus and Pastor were martyred in the year 304 during the Diocletian persecution. A chapel was erected on that spot in the 5th century, eventually becoming a cathedral during the Visigothic era. After several periods of medieval destruction and reconstruction, it was elevated to a collegiate church in the 15th century. Under the patronage of Cardinal Cisneros, the current building was constructed between 1497 and 1515 in the Isabelline Gothic style.

Its title of "Magistral," granted in 1519, makes it—along with St. Peter’s Church in Leuven—one of only two temples in the world with this distinction. This title required all its canons to be doctors of theology, reflecting its close ties to the University of Alcalá. In 1991, with the restoration of the diocese, it regained its status as a cathedral.

Featuring a Latin cross plan with three naves covered by ribbed vaults, the building combines a restrained exterior with a richly decorated interior. Notable highlights include its Flamboyant Gothic portal, the imposing 203-foot (62-meter) Herrerian tower—begun by Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón—and the 17th-century cloister, which houses the Interpretation Center and the Cathedral Museum.

In the ambulatory (girola), visitors can find the crypt containing the relics of the Holy Children, kept in a gold and silver urn. Among its chapels, the most prominent are those dedicated to the Virgen del Val, the patron saint of Alcalá, and Saint Diego of Alcalá.

Declared a National Monument in 1904 and restored after a devastating fire at the start of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, the Magistral Cathedral stands today as a historical, artistic, and spiritual landmark, witnessing over sixteen centuries of history in Alcalá de Henares.

One of the great attractions when strolling through the historic quarter is this museum, accessible and free of charge, which brings us closer to the legendary life of Cervantes, his work and the way of life during that time.

Cervantes was born in Alcalá de Henares in 1547 and his baptism was held on 9 October in the now-disappeared Church of Santa María la Mayor.

Did he really live in this House-Museum?

Cervantes' birthplace has been discussed and questioned. In 1948, the scholar Luis Astrana in his work "Vida ejemplar y heroica de Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra", argued that the museum site  was the original location of his house. The property belonged to the writer's grandfather, Juan de Cervantes.

In 1956, the museum was opened to the public, recreating the daily life of a wealthy family of the 16th and 17th centuries. The two-floor house with a beautiful interior courtyard reproduces the different ambiences: reception room, apothecary's shop, kitchen, dining room, gentleman's bedroom, women's and children's bedroom, ladies' dais, etc.

The decoration and the architecture alike play an important role in showing visitors Cervantes' lyfestyle  making them feel like real inhabitants of the house.

The house is also a centre of activities that aims to bring the public closer to the character of Cervantes and his time, through proposals such as the carnival processions during Carnival Festivity, the activities carried out during The Book Week, the Cervantes Week and Christmas season. 
Of special importance is the programme of workshops throughout the year. We recommend that you visit the museum's website in advance to check its agenda of activities.

Image credits: Museo Casa Natal de Cervantes © Community of Madrid

Opened to the public in 1603 as a playhouse where Golden Age performances were staged. Over the centuries its use has changed. In 2005 it was refurbished bringing it to its original use. Today it is one of the most attractive venues for classical Spanish theater. 

The Corral de Comedias of Alcalá de Henares has had different uses throughout its history: a playhouse since 1601, a roofed coliseum since 1769, a Romantic theater since 1831 and a movie theater from 1927 until 1980, the year in which the City Council recovered the property. 

After a long work of documentation and research, as well as subsequent restoration work, what is today one of the oldest Corrales de Comedias in Spain came to light.

Attending one of its classical theater performances is a unique experience. You can check its program by clicking here. However, if it does not coincide with the time of your visit, we recommend that you take one of the guided tours where you will be shown the stage machinery and artifacts that were used to change scenery and serve as what today would be "special effects".
 

Roman city of Complutum. It was built next to the Henares River in the time of Augustus (1st century B.C.) The streets and infrastructures of the ancient Roman city of Complutum are the origin of the current World Heritage city of Alcalá de Henares. Declared an Asset of Cultural Interest of the Community of Madrid, the archaeological site can be visited.

House of Griffins. Built in the Imperial era of Augustus, this "domus" or manor house has the largest collection of Roman mural paintings in the peninsula. It is still in the process of excavation, research and restoration.

House of Hippolytus. This building, built at the end of the 3rd century, was part of a large estate located on the outskirts of the city of Complutum. It was the Youth College and leisure center for young patricians, with a thermal area, swimming pools, gardens and a mausoleum dedicated to the memory of a patrician family of the place. Of particular note is a mosaic with a fishing scene made by the master Hippolytus that gives its name to the house.

Discover a world of ancient wonders at the Regional Archaeological and Paleontological Museum. With everything from dinosaur fossils to Roman artifacts, our collections offer a comprehensive look at the region's rich history.

 Join us for workshops, guided tours, and educational activities that bring the past to life. Located in a historic Dominican convent, our museum offers a truly unique experience.

Palace that was the residence of the Archbishops of Toledo when they traveled to Alcalá de Henares. It was originally a Mudejar fortress that began in the 12th century, with extensions until the nineteenth century.Today it houses the seat of the Diocese of Alcalá, but an unfortunate fire has preserved only one of the facades, the Renaissance one.

Rodrigo Ximénez de Rada ordered the walling of Alcalá and the construction of a small fortress as a temporary residence in 1209. Successive archbishops enlarged and embellished it until it became one of the finest Spanish palaces of its time.

The architect Alonso de Covarrubias made the splendid facade in which the windows and the coat of arms of the Cardinal-Infante Luis Antonio de Borbón on the upper floor stand out. It is also worth admiring the magnificent 19th century grille that closes the courtyard.

The enclosure has been the cradle of Kings (Catherine of Aragon), seat of Courts, Court of Auditors and Justice and Archive of the Kingdom. Today it is the seat of the Diocese of Alcalá de Henares.

It is worthwhile to start the tour in the Plaza de Palacio, pass by the Bernardas convent and go all the way around to see the open-air sculpture museum.

You can take a guided tour, for more information visit the tourist office of Alcalá de Henares in Cervantes square.
 

Built at the end of the 19th century in neo-Gothic and Mudejar style by the polymath artist Manuel José Laredo y Ordoño, from whom the palace takes its name. In its magical interior you will find false doors, mirrors and beautiful rooms. It is currently open to the public as the Cisneriano Museum.

Arriving to Alcalá de Henares by train (Cercanías Renfe) and heading towards the city centre along the street Calle de Estación, there is a remarkable building on the right which is somewhat similar to another building known as El Capricho, designed by Gaudí in 1883 and located in the Cantabrian town of Comillas. It is the Palacio de Laredo, which currently houses the Cisneriano Museum and a documentation centre, both of which are part of the University of Alcalá.

The palace was built as a private residence between 1880 and 1884 by the painter, restaurateur, architect and designer Manuel José Laredo, who was also the mayor of Alcalá. The Laredo palace is the best example of 19th-century historicist architecture in Complutense.

Numerous archaeological and architectural remains from other buildings were added into the palace, including the coffered ceilings and the ribbed vault of the castle-prison of Santorcaz. The paintings in the Kings' Hall are the work of Laredo himself. It also preserves one of the few interior gardens in the city.

Already during the Renaissance this space was an important spot of city life, since important celebrations such as the annual fair or even bullfights took place here.

In the center of the square is a statue dedicated to Cervantes, at the south end a bandstand, built in the late nineteenth century by the Lebrero foundry and the tower of the old church of Santa Maria la Mayor from where you can enjoy a good view of Alcala de Henares. You can also observe the baptismal font of Cervantes.

On the east side of the square, you will see the headquarters of the Círculo de Contribuyentes, created in 1893. On the west side are two institutions that have marked the history and culture of the city: The Town Hall and the Corral de Comedias, whose visit we recommend. 

The most common way to get to the Plaza Cervantes is from the Calle Mayor. During the Middle Ages, this curious arcaded street was the commercial center of the Jewish merchants. Today, under the arcades you will find small stores, cafes and bars. In this street you will also find the house-museum of Cervantes.

Leaving the Plaza along Pedro Gumiel Street, you will come to one of the outstanding monuments of Alcalá: the facade of the Cisneriana University, formerly the Colegio de San Ildefonso, which was founded in 1499 by Cardinal Cisneros. Today, it is the University of Alcalá. 

Built as a female cloistered convent by the architect Juan Gómez de Mora, it houses a museum where you can learn how the nuns lived and admire the magnificent art collection of the monastery. 

It was built as a cloistered convent of Cistercian nuns by order of the Archbishop of Toledo, under the direction of the architect Juan Gómez de Mora, author of the Plaza Mayor in Madrid, the Clerecia of Salamanca or the Pantheon of Kings of the Escorial.

Construction began in 1618, and inside it surprises a majestic oval dome, the largest of its kind made in Spain. In addition to the church, the monastery had a cell area, a major and minor cloister, an upper and lower choir, a chapter house, two sacristies, kitchen, pantry, cellar, porter's lodge, parlors and a small inn.

Look at the façade and notice the statue of St. Bernard, a work attributed to the Portuguese sculptor Manuel Pereira, whose hands also made the carvings of the Church of the Society of Jesus. In the upper tiers of the church is the Cistercian Cloistered Museum of San Bernardo, which recreates a cloistered cell and kitchen, along with part of the magnificent collection of art that has guarded the monastery for centuries.

The adjacent building is the Archbishop's Palace, official summer residence of the archbishops and bishops of Toledo and Alcalá, which suffered a fire in 1939 that affected the monastic complex. Thanks to several restoration projects, the dome and the lantern that crowns it recovered their splendor.

Alcalá de Henares was defended by a wall originally built in the 13th century, modified and enlarged in the 15th century and later. It had 22 towers and several gates, of which today only the Puerta de Madrid and the Arco de San Bernardo remain.

We can really speak of two walled enclosures, of which 700 meters remain today. Of the 22 rectangular towers, one semicircular and one pentagonal, only the Puerta de Madrid and the Arco de San Bernardo remain. In each walled enclosure, called lienzo, there are a series of entrance gates to the city, and of all of them, the only one that retains its original structure is the aforementioned Madrid Gate, which was completely rebuilt in the late eighteenth century by order of Cardinal Lorenzana.

It is very interesting to analyze the wall, since we can find Mudejar walls from the 13th century, in the northern area, near the so-called Puerta de Burgos.

The construction of the wall goes together with the development of the Archbishop's Palace and its defense, and all this derived from the donation that the Emperor Alfonso VII makes of the city to the religious from Toledo, being these the ones that contribute to the flourishing of the municipality. 

The Palace emerges as a Mudejar fortress by the hand of the Archbishop of Toledo, Rodrigo Ximenez de Rada, in the early thirteenth century, and has hosted important events, such as the celebration of the Cortes of the Kingdom and Councils, the death of King John I of Castile, or the birth of Catherine of Aragon and the place where Isabella the Catholic received Columbus on January 20, 1486.