Cathedral of Toledo - Interior - The Interior Chapels: Overview

The Interior Chapels: Overview

The main and minor chapels, conceived in the project of Rodrigo Ximénez de Rada, in their original state surrounded the sanctuary of the cathedral. Some were removed and others were widened or re-ordered. Of the minor chapels only the chapels of Saint Ann and Saint Giles remain. Of the main chapels those of Saint John the Baptist and Saint Leocadia remain with elements from the first era. The chapels of the Old Monarchs and of Saint Lucy remain with alterations only to their ornamentation.

The rest were drastically modified or removed, even though in some the entrance can still be recognized: six small chapels of the ambulatory gave way in the 14th and 15th centuries to the burial chapels of Saint Ildephonsus and Saint James; that of the Christ of the Column (also called of Saint Bartholomew) was transformed at the beginning of the 17th century to give way to that of the Christ of the Students; those of Saint Barbara, of Saint Nicholas, of Saint Elizabeth and of the Holy Trinity were integrated into other structures although some details permit their earlier appearance to be discerned.

After the various modifications, there now can be found the aforementioned Chapels of the Old Monarchs, Saint John the Baptist, Saint Leocadia and Saint Lucy, including that of Saint Eugene, of Saint Blaise (incorporated into the cloister), of Saint Peter and of the New Monarchs.

In the subsequent remodeling and construction, the architects almost always followed the criterion of advancing from the sanctuary of the cathedral towards the wall, which explains the sometimes chaotic current layout, with respect to the early designs. The first name of the chapel of the Old Monarchs is unknown. The current name had its origin in 1498 when Cardinal Cisneros wanted to transfer the royal tombs from the main chapel, which in the end was never done. In the 13th century, this served as a sepulchre to house the remains of Archbishop González Díaz Palomeque. The chapel of Saint Lucy is one of the few places in the cathedral where some remains of the old mosque can still be seen—in particular, a column and its capital.

The chapel of Saint Eugene (also called of Saint Peter the Old or of the Corpus Christi), is located on the south side, and retains the architectural style of the 13th century in contrast to the rest of the cathedral. The chapel of Saint Peter is the largest of all and serves as a parochial chapel. The cathedral has a heptogonal sanctuary, with two rows, and tierceron vaults; it was built at the beginning of the 15th century to serve as a burial chamber for Archbishop Sancho de Rojas.