Foundation of the Monastery of San Jerónimo in Granada

Knowing how the foundation of the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Granada came about is important to understand the essence of this monument, discovering the actions that the Order of the Hieronymites developed in the city to transmit their religiosity and carry out their liturgical activity.

Would you like to learn about the origins of the Monastery of San Jerónimo in Granada? Stay and read this article, we will show you everything you need to know below!

Order of the Hieronymites

Various events, such as the crises of the 14th century or the high mortality rate due to the Black Death, caused many people to fear the punishments that came from above. Thus, there were many who decided to adopt a life of detachment from the world, taking Saint Jerome as an example.

In this way, a group was formed centred on rigorous asceticism and prayer, withdrawing to hermitages in order to develop their desire. This is how the Order of the Hieronymites was born, settling in a temple that would eventually become the Hieronymite Monastery of Lupiana.

Their community life was approved and they enjoyed the protection of kings and nobility, which allowed them to grow and expand throughout different geographical areas, reaching as far as Granada.

Beginnings of the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Granada

The origins of the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Granada are related to the reconquest of the city by the Catholic Monarchs, for whose enterprise the Hieronymite monks did not cease to raise prayers to heaven. The establishment of a Hieronymite monastery in the city was therefore favoured by Isabella and Ferdinand's good relations with the Order.

Furthermore, on the same day that the Capitulations for the surrender of Granada had been signed, which was also the day of Saint Catherine Martyr, a fire broke out in the tent occupied by the Kings in Santa Fe and, in gratitude for the fact that no incident had occurred, Isabella and Ferdinand established that a chapel to Saint Catherine would be erected in the same location, which would serve as a convent for the Hieronymite monks.

Once the hermitage was founded, Queen Isabella invited the Hieronymite Order to start a new monastery on this site. However, the Hieronymites' stay in this temple was short-lived, due to the poor hygienic conditions of the place, as the settlement of the troops and their horses during the war meant that there was little cleanliness in the area and it was full of fleas and other pests.

The Kings understood this situation and donated other lands to the Hieronymite monks, where today we can admire the spectacular Monastery.

Buy your tickets to the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Granada

As you have seen throughout this article on the founding of the Monastery of San Jerónimo in Granada, the existence of this monument has a remarkable history behind it, as well as its symbolic meaning, being the first Christian temple to be built after the reconquest by the Catholic Monarchs.

If you would like to see this spectacular site for yourself, you can buy tickets to the Monastery of San Jerónimo on our official website of the Archdiocese of Granada.

Let yourself be amazed by all its splendour!