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The Monastery of San Salvador of Leyre (Basque : Leireko San Salbatore monasterioa; Spanish : Monasterio de San Salvador de Leire) is a religious complex to the south of the Sierra de Leyre, in northern Navarre, Spain, representing one of the most important historical monasteries of Spain.
The oldest records of the site date from 842, when Íñigo Arista, considered the first king of Pamplona, and Wilesindo, Bishop of Pamplona, made a donation to the monastery. The monastery grew in importance thereafter, acquiring numerous properties and wealth during the first and middle stages of the Kingdom of Navarre, thanks to the privileges and donations made by the Navarrese kings. The monastery was expanded in the twelfth century. Several kings of Navarre were buried there.
Since then it has been in various states of repair, undergoing many expansions and remodelling (the most extensive carried out in the sixteenth century, when almost the entire monastery was rebuilt). Romanesque architecture pieces have survived until the present day (such as the church, with its Porta Speciosa), as well as parts that are even more ancient such as the notable crypt.
Leyre was founded as a Benedictine monastery, but later came to be owned by Cistercian monks. Currently, the monastery belongs to the Chartered Community of Navarre, which has transferred the monastery to its original inhabitants, the Benedictine order, for care and operation.
In June 2015, the monastery was the setting for the first official visit of Felipe, Prince of Asturias as King of Spain with his wife Princess Letizia. [1]
The monastery is located on one of the various routes of the Way of Saint James coming from the Corridor of Berdún and Jaca. The name of the monastery has been adopted as a female name under the form Leire, especially popular across the Basque Country.
The Leyre Casket, an ornate ivory casket produced in 1004/5 in Muslim Cordoba which held the relics of Nunio and Alodio for some time, belonged to the monastery for several centuries and takes it name from the monastery.
Pamplona, historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain.
Sancho Garcés III, also known as Sancho the Great, was the King of Pamplona from 1004 until his death in 1035. He also ruled the County of Aragon and by marriage the counties of Castile, Álava and Monzón. He later added the counties of Sobrarbe (1015), Ribagorza (1018) and Cea (1030), and would intervene in the Kingdom of León, taking its eponymous capital city in 1034.
The Kingdom of Navarre, originally the Kingdom of Pamplona occupied lands on both sides of the western Pyrenees, with its northernmost areas originally reaching the Atlantic Ocean, between present-day Spain and France.
Sancho Garcés II, also known as Sancho II, was King of Pamplona and Count of Aragon from 970 until his death in 994. He was the eldest son of García Sánchez I of Pamplona and Andregoto Galíndez. He recognised the Kingdom of Viguera during his reign.
Íñigo Arista was a Basque chieftain and the first king of Pamplona. He is thought to have risen to prominence after the defeat of local Frankish partisans at the Battle of Pancorbo in 816, and his rule is usually dated from shortly after the defeat of a Carolingian army in 824.
Baztan is a municipality from the Chartered Community of Navarre, northern Spain. It is located 58 km (36 mi) from Pamplona, the capital of Navarre. It is the largest municipality in Navarre, with around 376.8 km2 and just over 8,000 inhabitants.
Igúzquiza is a town and municipality located in the province and autonomous community of Navarre, northern Spain. Igúzquiza is 4 km from Estella and 50.03 km from the capital of the community, Pamplona. It covers an area of 18.02 km² and Its population in 2023 was 301 inhabitants.
Oteiza or Oteiza de la Solana, is a village and a Spanish municipality of the Foral Community of Navarra, located in the merindad of Estella, in the Estella Oriental region, 51 km from the capital of the community, Pamplona. Its population in 2016 was 939.
Hernani is a town and municipality located in the province of Gipuzkoa, Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. The town sits on the left bank of the Urumea river. It is located at a distance of 9.2 km from San Sebastián. The municipality of Hernani occupies an area of approximately 40 square kilometres and is bordered by San Sebastián, Astigarraga, Arano, Elduayen, Errenteria, Lasarte-Oria and Urnieta.
Saints Nunilo and Alodia were a pair of child martyrs from Huesca. Born of a mixed marriage, they supposedly eschewed the Islam of their father in favour of their mother's Christianity. Legend stated that they were executed by the Muslim authorities of Huesca in accordance with sharia law as apostates. Their feast day is 22 October.
The Battle of Torrevicente was fought on Saturday, 9 July 981 between a force loyal to the Caliphate of Córdoba under the command of Ibn Abi ‘Amir and a rebel force under Galib ibn Abd al-Rahman and his Christian allies, King Ramiro Garcés of Viguera and Count García Fernández of Castile. It was Galib's intention to continue the policy of previous caliphs, Abd ar-Rahman III and al-Hakam II, which was to maintain supremacy over the Christian principalities in peace. Ibn Abi ‘Amir was pursuing a new policy of jihad, signalled by his seven aggressive actions against the Christians in the previous three years. Both Ramiro and Galib died during the battle and Ibn Abi ‘Amir was victorious. It was the twelfth of Ibn Abi ‘Amir's military campaigns, and was called in Muslim sources the "Campaign of the Victory".
The Salazar Valley is a valley in the east of the Foral Community of Navarre in Spain. It lies within the Merindad of Zangoza-Sangüesa and within that, the Comarca of Roncal-Salazar. The Sierra de Abodi, part of the Western Pyrenees, forms the natural boundary in the north. There is a ski resort in Abodi.
Fortún Ochoiz or Fortún Ochoa was a Navarrese nobleman, diplomat, and statesman. Throughout his known career he held the tenencia of La Rioja, an important marcher lordship, the rump of the Kingdom of Viguera, and the foundation for the Lordship of Los Cameros. Fortún helped fix the border between southwestern Navarre and the Kingdom of Castile, and he married into the royal family and fought alongside his father-in-law, García Sánchez III in the Reconquista. His ancestors may have belonged to the Banu Qasi, themselves descended from Visigothic nobility, and his descendants continued to rule their patrimony until the twelfth century.
Santa María la Real de Irache is a former Benedictine monastery located in the town of Ayegui, Navarre, Spain. It dates from the eighth century, although the surviving buildings are later.
Fortún Garcés Cajal was a Navarro-Aragonese nobleman and statesman, perhaps "the greatest noble of Alfonso the Battler's reign". He was very wealthy in both land and money, and could raise two to three hundred knights for his retinue, funded both out of his treasury and enfeoffed on his lands.
The Monastery of San Salvador was a Benedictine monastery in the town of Oña, in the province of Burgos, central Spain, founded in 1011, which lasted until the 19th century.
Leire is a Basque feminine given name that is derived from the name of the Monastery of San Salvador of Leyre in Navarre, Spain. It was among the top 10 most popular names given to newborn girls in Basque Country in Spain in 2011.
The Museum of Navarra is the art museum of Navarre, and is located on Calle Cuesta Santo Domingo in Pamplona, in the Navarre province of Spain.
The Leyre Casket is one of the jewels of Hispano-Arab Islamic art. It is a casket or reliquary made of elephant ivory which was made in 1004/5 in the Caliphate of Cordoba.
The Sierra de Leyre or Sierra de Leire is a mountain range in Navarre (Spain). It is the first pre-Pyrenean mountain range and is located in the northeast of the Comunidad Foral. It is 30 km long and has an east–west orientation.