La Seu Vella

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The Cathedral of La Seu Vella of Lérida is the oldest cathedral in Lérida, Spain. It has been replaced by a Bourbon structure, the Seu Nova. "Seu Vella" (or Sede Vieja) and "Seu Nova" (or Sede Nueva) mean "Old See" and "New See" respectively. Nevertheless, the Seu Vella is the definign monument of Lérida, being visible from its hilltop site anywhere in the city.

Construction began on the site in 1203 under the direction of Pere de Coma, the first master builder and the building's original architect. Construction continued throughout the reign of James the Conqueror, as whose architectural monument it is sometimes seen. It was consecrated to the Virgin Mary on 31 October 1278. The cloisters were not completed until the fourteenth century, at which time work on the belltower was begun. It was finished in 1431.

In 1707, the city was conquered by troops of Philip V and the cathedral was ordered destroyed by express command of the king because it has taken a prominent part in the city's defence. Nevertheless, the ordered was never followed through upon and the cathedral was converted into a barracks and cut off from the public in 1797.

The cathedral is designed in a transitory style between romanesque and gothic. It lacks almost any influence of Islamic architecture. The floor plan is of a basilica in a Latin cross with three naves. The tower is octagonal with a central space of five apses. The interior was decorated in painted murals and sculpture, much of which is still preserved, but much of which has been despoiled during the War of Spanish Succession.

The octagonal tower is 12.65 metres in diameter at its base, but 9.62 metres at the top. Its maximum height is 60 metres and it contains 238 steps. A bell named Mónica announces the quarter-hours and one Silvestra announces the hours. The bells are of the international Gothic style of the fifteenth century.