Saint Mary Cathedral - Toledo

If you are spending a week in Madrid and can afford a day out of the city, than visiting Toledo and its Cathedral is a must.

Toledo Cathedral is definitly with Sevilla and Cordoba among the most beautiful Churches you would visit in Spain. For several centuries, and despite the transfer of Spain's Capital from Toledo to Madrid in the middle of the 16th century, the Toledo Cathedral remained as the official Cathedral for both Toledo and Madrid until the 20th century and the construction of Madrid's La Almudena Cathedral.

The Primate Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo (Catedral Primada Santa María de Toledo) is a Roman Catholic cathedral, seat of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Toledo.

The cathedral of Toledo is one of the three 13th-century High Gothic cathedrals in Spain and is considered, in the opinion of some authorities, to be the magnum opus of the Gothic style in Spain. Its construction begun in 1226 under the rule of Ferdinand III and the last Gothic contributions were made in the 15th century when, in 1493, the vaults of the central nave were finished during the time of the Catholic Monarchs.

It was modeled after the Bourges Cathedral in France, although its five naves plan is a consequence of the constructors' intention to cover all of the sacred space of the former city mosque with the cathedral, and of the former sahn with the cloister.

It also combines some characteristics of the Mudéjar style, mainly in the cloister, and with the presence of multifoiled arches in the triforium. The spectacular incorporation of light and the structural achievements of the ambulatory vaults are some of its more remarkable aspects.

For more information visit the Cathedral's Wikipedia page;Less