Almudena Cathedral - Catedral de la Almudena

It is something of a miracle that the Almudena Cathedral exists. For centuries, Church and State could not agree on whether Madrid should have a cathedral; once they did, it took 110 years to complete the Almudena Cathedral.

In 1883 work began on a neo-Gothic design by the Marqués de Cubas, but this scheme went off course after only the crypt was completed. Another architect, Fernando Chueca Goitia, took over in 1944, and introduced a neo-classical style. Although the Almudena Cathedral  has failed to win much affection over the years, it was finally finished in 1993 and visited by the Pope.

The site once contained the church of Santa María de la Almudena, formerly the main mosque of Muslim Madrid (the name comes from the Arabic al mudin, 'the mill') until it was knocked down by liberal reformers in 1870. One of its more interesting pieces in the Almudena Cathedral is the 13th-century polychromatic funerary chest of San Isidro.

Address C/Bailén 10
Transport Metro Ópera .
Telephone 91 542 22 00
Open 10am-2pm, 5-9pm daily