★★★★★ 5.0
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Royal Basilica of Saint Francis the Great
Thirty-three meters across and fifty-eight meters HIGH—that dome overhead is Europe's fourth LARGEST dome, right after the Pantheon and St. Peter's! King Charles III demolished an old convent in seventeen-sixty to build THIS neoclassical masterpiece, finished seventeen-eighty-four. A young, pre-famous Goya painted chapel frescoes here. Notice that circular floor? Revolutionary for seventeen-eighties church design. And the real treasure—Saint Francis of Assisi himself walked this exact La Latina ground in twelve-fourteen during his pilgrimage to Santiago.
Did You Know?
- : The Royal Basilica of Saint Francis the Great stands on land said to have been offered to Saint Francis of Assisi himself during his pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in 1214, making it one of the few churches in Europe with a direct connection to the saint’s journey through Spain.
- The basilica’s dome is the largest in Spain and ranks as the fourth largest in Europe, surpassed only by St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, the Pantheon in Rome, and the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Flower in Florence—its interior frescoes were painted by Francisco Goya, one of Spain’s most celebrated artists.
- For a time, the basilica served as Spain’s National Pantheon, housing the remains of famous artists and politicians, including the painter Francisco Goya, whose body was interred here before being moved to Spain’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts.