The Renaissance reached its zenith in Spain in the XVI century
and it is evident that the Santiago Cathedral
and its surroundings absorbed its influence.
This is precisely when the new cloister,
substituting the medieval one, was built.
The works began in 1509 and in this project
some of the most famous Masters of the Spanish Renaissance participated,
such as Juan de Álava and Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón.
In it exterior, the palatial Treasure façade and its famous stepped tower were built.
Later on, this façade would be completed with the Torre de Vela,
inspired by the former.
Also in the XVI century, the Plaza del Obradoiro
begins to take shape when the Hospital Real for pilgrims
and the sick is constructed.
The Catholic Monarchs undergo a pilgrimage to Compostela
to thank the Apostle Santiago for their conquest of Granada.
Seeing firsthand the great number of worshippers,
they promote its construction.
Currently, it is known as the Hostal de los Reyes Católicos,
and it is one of the most beautiful buildings of the Spanish Renaissance.
Later, the building of the present steps that give way to the Pórtico de la Gloria,
built by Ginés Martínez, would get underway.
A gallery of ionian columns would lend even more splendor to the plaza del Obradoiro
A series of events had caused a reduction
in the number of pilgrims to Santiago since the XIV century.
The horrifying black plague that decimated the European population,
as well as the great schism that divided Catholics in 1378, rang in this crisis.
During the XVI century, Martin Luther’s Reformation
caused a whole new schism that fully affected Compostelan pilgrimages:
after harshly criticizing this practice,
he effectively uprooted Jacobean devotion in central European nations.
In 1589, Archbishop Juan de San Clemente
was warned that the pirate Francis Drake had leveled
A Coruña in response to the failed invasion of the Spanish Armada.
The Archbishop proceeded to bury – in complete secrecy –
the relics of the Apostle behind the main altar of the cathedral.
The disappearance of the remains of the Apostle
worsened the crisis of the Jacobean route.
The arrival of the canon José de Vega y Verdugo
at Santiago would be a determining factor
in the baroque metamorphosis of the old medieval cathedral.
In 1656, the cabildo approved a set of ambitious remodeling projects
backed by the financing of King Felipe IV.
The purpose of the canon was to superimpose
new architectural and baroque ornamental structures
on the interior and exterior of the cathedral,
while keeping the original Romanesque floor plan.
These architectural reforms began in 1658
with the complete remodeling of the main chapel
and the construction in the cathedral’s apse
and of the Pórtico Real de la Quintana,
with the purpose of dignifying the Puerta Santa
the pilgrims’ access during jubilee years.
The transformation of the apse of the basilica
culminated first with the new dome atop the gothic lantern tower,
and later with the construction of the clock tower.
The medieval crenellations became huge balustrades and thus,
little by little, Gelmírez’s Romanesque legacy became hidden under a modern baroque cover.
But the metamorphosis was not yet complete.
The baroque masking needed to be rounded off
with a new façade in the Plaza del Obradoiro,
and the architect Fernando de Casas was entrusted with the task.
After many proposals, a new façade was finally built
replacing the one Master Mateo had constructed.
The two medieval towers were raised and their heights were equaled.
And in the central body, one of the largest windows
ever built so far was opened to illuminate the inside of the cathedral.
Under a recess, the complex is presided
by a sculpture of the Apostle Santiago wearing the pilgrim´s habit.
At his sides, two pairs of angels with the cross of the Order of Santiago.
Under him, his disciples, Atanasio and Teodoro
– also dressed as pilgrims –
flanking an urn that represents the Apostle’s sepulcher.
And a star the one the Hermit Pelayo saw
where today stands the Temple of the Stars.
Although the Way of St. James managed
to recapture part of its prestige in the XVIII century,
a crisis relapsed with the great social changes of the XIX century.
The low point came on July 25 1867,
when only 40 pilgrims attended the Apostle’s festivity.
But during the course of the 1879 dig,
canon López Ferreiro found the relics
that had remained hidden for three hundred years.
In 1884, Pope Leo XIII declared their authenticity
and extolled the populace to undertake pilgrimages to the holy sepulcher.
The papal document was key to the revitalization of Jacobean faith.
Since then – and until today - an increase in the number
of pilgrims to Compostela has not waned.
The visits of Pope John Paul II and later Benedict XVI
in the Holy Compostelan year of 2010,
surrounded by a fervent multitude of pilgrims from all over the world,
are a testimony to the magnificent vitality the Jacobean cult has today.
But not with standing all the changes, the works of Peláez and Gelmírez,
of Masters Bernardo, Esteban, Mateo, and countless others,
still remain unaltered and recognizable.
In the spaces within its naves, columns, tribunes,
chapels and porticos, the spirit of all those
who contributed to its erection is conserved.