Church of St. James the Greater

The church of Santiago el Mayor is one of the most representative buildings of Torrenueva and a fundamental reference to understand the historical trajectory of the town.

Its importance within the urban center and its very dedication refer to the town's past as a center of the Order of Santiago, integrated for centuries into the sphere of the Major Commandery of Castile.

In this context, the temple was not only a place of worship, but also one of the main centers for the articulation of local life.

It is a building whose Construction took place between 1450 and 1550.

It features a masonry construction using lime and stone, reinforced with ashlar blocks at the corners, and can be situated between the late Gothic and the beginnings of the Renaissance, with some Mudéjar contributions.

Inside, it is organized into a single nave divided into four sections, covered with star-shaped ribbed vaults, while on the outside, its two portals stand out, especially the main one on the south side, in a Plateresque style with late Gothic influences.

The visit allows you to appreciate a temple of remarkable formal richness, where the rectangular apse, the buttresses, the tower located at the feet and, above all, the southern portal stand out, conceived as the main access and enriched with archivolts, sculptural decoration and the image of Santiago Matamoros in the tympanum.

All of this makes this church one of the most outstanding heritage landmarks of Torrenueva and an essential stop to understand the religious architecture of the late medieval and modern periods in the Campo de Montiel.