Santes Creus and the Cistercian Route

Regarding the name of Santes Creus, according to a legend, the shepherds of the place used to bring their cattle from the mountains to the lower lands in winter where they enjoyed a milder climate. The large number of cattle left organic matter on these lands from their defecation and abandonment of dead animals, this meant that due to their putrefaction and when it rained, phosphorescent gases were released during the night, which formed wisps, in plain sight. which the shepherds took as a supernatural and miraculous event, so they placed wooden crosses where they had seen the lights the night before. This made this territory begin to be known as "field or place of Santes Creus."

On the bank of the Gaià river we find the monastery of Santes Creus , which was the center of one of the most extensive and influential monastic lordships of the Crown of Aragon. With a solid, serious and austere architecture, the abbey reflects the canonical model of the Cistercian monasteries (along with Vallbona de les Monges and Poblet ). Visiting Santes Creus is to relive a time when purity and distance from the world were realized in a point well anchored in the earth.

Founded in 1160, the peak of Santes Creus was between the 13th and 14th centuries, due to its close relationship with the nobility and royal lineage. Kings Peter III of Aragon and James II the Just and his wife Blanche of Anjou were patrons of the monastery and chose to be buried here, in two Gothic mausoleums next to the main altar. The study and restoration of the royal pantheons, in 2010, made it possible to discover the remains of Pedro III of Aragon and Blanche of Anjou, the only kings of the Crown of Aragon whose remains have remained intact.

The plan of the monastery organizes the spaces according to the needs of the community. The church, opened for worship in 1225, is an example of the transition from Romanesque to Gothic. Although it offers a feeling of lightness and grandeur, it is a solid and austere temple. It contrasts with the splendor of the cloister, from the 14th century, the first in the Gothic style of the Crown of Aragon.

In 1835 and as a consequence of the confiscation of Mendizábal, the community abandoned the building. It was declared a national monument by royal order of July 13, 1921. It is part of the Cistercian Route