We decided on a visit to Estella from the Parador at Olite, and it was another wonderful day, filled with amazing sights. And it was sunny! One of the few such days we enjoyed during our time in Spain.
A brief history of Estella
Estella nestles in a little valley on the River Ega, surrounded by hills. It was founded in the 11th century by King Sancho to protect the route to Santiago, and the Royal Court established itself here in the Middle Ages. By the 13th century c.500,000 pilgrims were travelling to Santiago every year and Estella’s position on the Camino would certainly have ensured a good income for the town. It was also part of the defensive system against the Muslims. In its day Estella enjoyed the same importance and status as Pamplona and Tudela.
One of the main Jewish communities in Navarre was established here, but as a result of strong anti-Jewish campaigning the Jews were massacred in the early 1300’s.
And from here it is a shortish hop to Santiago…
Church of San Pedro de la Rua
The Church of San Pedro de la Rua dates from the 12th-13th centuries, i.e. when the town was established and is built on the route of the Camino, overlooking the town.
You can climb these steps on the Calle San Nicolas, or take the escalator a few yards down the street – guess which we did! The escalator leads directly into the Cloister, and from there you can also access the church.
The church, the escalator and the main west door
The Cloister of San Pedro
Only two sides of the original Cloister remain; the rest was destroyed in the 16th century. It is beautiful and atmospheric and it came as a surprise to find a ‘hanging’ garden after walking through the streets.
The double columns reminded me of the Cloister of Santo Domingo de Silos – an extraordinarily beautiful and peaceful sanctuary. Romanesque art1 came into the north of Spain, along the pilgrim routes and as a result of the influence of the Kings of Navarre who were in both France and Spain. In the south of Spain Mudejar art and architecture prevailed.
The carved capitals are magnificent and really merit hours of study, and return visits. This is the best I can do. The capitals closest to the church show saints, people and scenes from the bible, while the other wing of the cloister is decorated with fantastical animals, plants and designs.
Inside San Pedro
Like most Romanesque churches the interior is quiet, and calm, not overburdened by ornate Baroque carvings and altarpieces.
Palace of the Kings of Navarre
This building, just below the Church of San Pedro, dates from the early days of the town. It is the only remaining Romanesque civic building and is now the Museum of Gustavo de Maeztu.
The capitals on the building show the battle between Farragut, the Lord of the Castle of Najera, and a Muslim, and Roland, Charlemagne’s nephew. Roland finally died in Roncevaux, when he and Charlemagne were returning to France.
River Ega
We saw this enormous church above us as we left San Pedro but felt we couldn’t manage another just yet, and weren’t sure it was open either.
The River Ega flows through the town and is a tributary of the Ebro, which we found when we were in Calahorra. We crossed over on the Prison Bridge and went looking for a cup of coffee.
This modest-looking cafe was really lovely inside, and had a little terrace overlooking the river. A very good stop!
Read more in part 2…
- Romanesque Architecture in Spain: https://arsartisticadventureofmankind.wordpress.com/tag/spanish-romanesque-architecture/ ↩︎
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