From mosque to Romanesque canonical

The cathedral of Tudela is a magnificent example of a frequent action in the evolution of great medieval Iberian architecture: the conversion of the aljama mosques (the main mosques of each locality, destined for communal prayer on Fridays) into canonical or cathedrals after the conquest of the Andalusian cities. The case of Tudela is paradigmatic. Once taken by the troops of Alfonso I the Battler in 1119 and the submission of the mosque in 1120, during the first decades Christian worship took place in the old Islamic naves, which were hardly modified (the Building of a new portico in 1125 is recorded). We suppose that, as in other places, the conquerors would have been content to reorient the interior space. While the Muslims from Tudela had occupied the conference room prayer area of the mosque facing south, the Christians would have preferred to direct their attention towards the east, towards Jerusalem, which is why they would have placed the new altar, dedicated to Saint Mary and consecrated by Bishop Miguel de Tarazona, at the eastern end of the conference room. In 1135 the existence of canons who led a community life is documented. In 1140 Santa María de Tudela was given to the cathedral of Pamplona, but soon returned to depend on the see of Tarazona (1143).

The new late Romanesque building, erected in the second half of the 12th century, adopted a formula common among the great Christian churches: the cross-shaped plan. It was begun on the exterior of the mosque, on its eastern side. The project shows an evident familiarity with the most advanced churches of its time in the Ebro Valley. Truly monumental, it was planned with three naves and a wide chevet with five parallel chapels open to the transept. The central chapel and the intermediate chapels were designed with a curved end wall, while those at the ends were arranged with a straight headwall. It is enough to compare the amplitude and height of the temple with those of other urban parishes in Navarre of prosperous localities of the time, such as Santa María de Sangüesa or San Pedro de la Rúa de Estella, to realize that architectural ambition and the availability of economic means were from the beginning signs of identity of the business tudelana.

It is convenient to insist on this question, because the present condition of cathedral of Santa María de Tudela could lead one to think that its dimensions and quality are due to the desire to erect a building with the characteristics of a cathedral. But, as we have pointed out, Santa María de Tudela was a non-episcopal canonical building in the 12th century. What is certain is that it does not lose out in the panorama of late Romanesque architectural renovation that spread throughout the northern half of the Iberian Peninsula, a movement to which belong great factories such as the splendid Cistercian monasteries (among others, the nearby monasteries of La Oliva, Fitero and Veruela) or the cathedrals of the Tarragona archdiocese (Tarragona, Zaragoza, Lérida). The general organization and the arrangement of doors and stairs in the nave of the transept of Tudela are reminiscent of Santa María de La Oliva. It cannot be ruled out that the late Romanesque chevet of the Seo of Zaragoza was also source of inspiration, although the later modifications of the Aragonese temple do not ratify it. The distribution of the chapels of Tudela bears a striking resemblance to a Cistercian monastery Spanish, Valbuena de Duero (Valladolid), presumably later than Santa María de Tudela. Examination of the elevation of the building reveals new links. The initial distribution of windows, some narrow with semicircular tops and others circular, possibly derives from the disappeared Romanesque cathedral of Pamplona. In the central chapel and in the exterior chapels, ribbed vaults were erected, the most advanced of their time. The ribs that culminate the apse, with triple vaulting, converge in the separation arch with the previous section; those at the ends have a simpler section, with semicircular molding. The intermediate chapels are covered with oven vaults and pointed barrel vaults.

Work progressed rapidly. Purchases of plots of land increased between 1156 and 1172. In 1186 there is talk of houses "for the new cloister". Once the late Romanesque vaults were finished, the five chapels of the chancel could be opened for worship. The dedication of the main altar probably took place in 1188. In order to continue with the elevation of the naves, it was necessary to demolish the old Muslim chapel , which may have slowed things down. In 1228 the work on the bells is explicitly mentioned, perhaps referring to those located in the octagonal turret above the chancel.

The architect designed three naves of unequal height, each with four bays. He used pillars of a subject very common in late Romanesque Iberian architecture, which scholars such as Élie Lambert called "hispanolanguedocianos". In them, to the cruciform section core are attached pairs of semi-columns on each main face and complementary shafts in the angles, designed to receive the ribs of the ribbed vaults. The examination of the walls, the analysis of the construction elements (rib profiles, types of windows, moldings, etc.) and the distribution of the capitals reveals that the Building of the chapels was followed by the walls of the transept, the perimeter walls of the naves and the first three pairs of columns, always resorting to solutions typical of late Romanesque architecture. Both the corner columns in the exterior chapels and the design of the pillars show that from the beginning the architect thought of covering most of the building with ribbed vaults.