Medieval Churches on the Spanish Frontier : How Elite Emulation in Architecture Contributed to the Transformation of a Territorial Expansion Into Reconquista
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University of Louisville ThinkIR: The University of Louisville's Institutional Repository Electronic Theses and Dissertations 5-2011 Medieval churches on the Spanish frontier : how elite emulation in architecture contributed to the transformation of a territorial expansion into Reconquista. Kelly L. Watt University of Louisville Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.library.louisville.edu/etd Recommended Citation Watt, Kelly L., "Medieval churches on the Spanish frontier : how elite emulation in architecture contributed to the transformation of a territorial expansion into Reconquista." (2011). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 1538. https://doi.org/10.18297/etd/1538 This Doctoral Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ThinkIR: The University of Louisville's Institutional Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ThinkIR: The University of Louisville's Institutional Repository. This title appears here courtesy of the author, who has retained all other copyrights. For more information, please contact [email protected]. MEDIEVAL CHURCHES ON THE SPANISH FRONTIER: HOW ELITE EMULATION IN ARCHITECTURE CONTRIBUTED TO THE TRANSFORMATION OF A TERRITORIAL EXPANSION INTO RECONQUISTA By Kelly L. Watt B.A., Olivet Nazarene University, 1995 M.A., University of Cincinnati, 2002 A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of the University of Louisville In Partial Fulfillment of the requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Fine Arts University of Louisville Louisville, Kentucky May 2011 Copyright 2011 by Kelly L. Watt All rights reserved MEDIEVAL CHURCHES ON THE SPANISH FRONTIER: HOW ELITE EMULATION IN ARCHITECTURE CONTRIBUTED TO THE TRANSFORMATION OF A TERRITORIAL EXPANSION INTO RECONQUISTA By Kelly L. Watt B.A., Olivet Nazarene University, 1995 M.A., University of Cincinnati, 2002 A Dissertation Approved on April 29, 2011 by the following Dissertation Committee: __________________________________ Dissertation Director __________________________________ __________________________________ __________________________________ ___________________________________ ii This dissertation is dedicated to my husband Brian Watt And the jaunty travelers, Ian and Colin iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to first thank the Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research from the American Philosophical Society for generously funding a portion of the research for this project. A Photographic Grant from the American Society for Hispanic Art Historical Studies was also gratefully applied toward the cost of images. Expressions of thanks are offered to the Hite Art Institute of the University of Louisville for their substantive financial support. Significant debts of gratitude also extend to the many individuals who have supported this lengthy process. In particular, the final stages of this dissertation would have been very difficult without the unselfish support and insightful criticism of my dissertation advisor, Dr. Christopher Fulton. Special appreciation is due to Dr. Pamela Patton, who has generously served as consulting advisor for the duration of this project. Over the last five years, I have benefitted enormously from her expert mentorship, wit, and wisdom. I wish to also thank the other readers of this dissertation: Dr. Gregory Hutcheson, who provided early encouragement, critical support, and a brilliant class in Segovia and Dr. Stephanie Maloney, who not only graciously offered excellent advice but who introduced me to early medieval Iberia. This project was begun under the direction of Dr. Karen Britt, and I wish to acknowledge her contribution to the early phases of research. iv Several scholars have been kind enough to respond to my requests for information at different stages of the research and writing; in particular, Mickey Abel, Milagros Guardia, and Jose Luís Senra have all supplied important words of advice and encouragement along the way. While in Spain, I was introduced to the superb Raquel Alonso Álvarez, whose collegiality and friendship I deeply appreciate. My research in Spain was also aided by the welcome support of scholar and Soria Románica project director, Josemi Lorenzo Arribas, as well as the intrepid academic, Flora Ward. My family and friends have sustained me with their beautiful words and deeds and I want to acknowledge their essential role. To my mother, Nancy Thor, thank you for showing me through your example that determination wins the day in graduate school and for the recent weeks spent caring for my little ones and doing mountains of laundry unasked. Much credit also goes to Walter and Janet Watt, who have driven across the Midwest to pitch in and prop up. My dear friend Jamie Ratliff has served as a scholarly sounding board and last-minute editor and I thank her for it from the bottom of my heart. Above all, I want to thank my husband, Brian Watt, for cheerfully holding down the fort, skillfully wielding the camera, and inspiring me to never give up. v ABSTRACT MEDIEVAL CHURCHES ON THE SPANISH FRONTIER: HOW ELITE EMULATION IN ARCHITECTURE CONTRIBUTED TO THE TRANSFORMATION OF A TERRITORIAL EXPANSION INTO RECONQUISTA Kelly L. Watt April 15, 2011 This dissertation examines the architectural evidence in the ongoing debate surrounding the demographical and political value of the shifting Iberian frontier of the tenth through twelfth centuries. In particular, it seeks to problematize the current generalization of rural stone churches in the central Duero River basin as “repopulation” churches. Using postcolonial theory and comparative analysis, this project argues that the construction of stone churches on sacred sites at the frontier was a useful strategy employed by those seeking to establish authority over existing indigenous and heterogeneous populations. Convincing arguments were needed to not only justify the usurpation of power but more importantly, to persuade diverse inhabitants to submit their men and resources to the goals of the new order. Crucial to the appearance of legitimacy in a would-be ruler was the “restoration” of significant churches on holy topographies, the focus of chapters two and three. The template for a successful restoration included: the selection of a sacred landscape with a pre-conquest history, architectural forms associated with both the vi ecclesiastic hierarchy and Christian and Muslim political powers, and painting and sculpture that bolstered the patron’s claims of legitimate authority. These frontier restorations were deliberately modeled on the strategies employed by kings and abbots seeking to expand their influence over large tracts of land, for example, the holdings of San Millán de la Cogolla (Rioja) and San Juan de la Peña (Huesca). By using elite architectural elements at meaningful sites, non-royal patrons articulated their authority and the favor of God at frontier churches like San Baudelio de Berlanga (Soria) and Santa Maria de Wamba (Valladolid), the case studies for this project. While the specific ways in which patrons constructed churches varied according to place and time, the themes of “restoration” and lordship are pervasive. Over time, the symbolic dissemination of the idea that sacred centers had been “restored” to Iberian Christendom helped to transform a rationalization of territorial expansion into a heroic, Hispanic Reconquista . vii TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………………………………………………...iv ABSTRACT………………………………………………………………………….…..vi LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………………………………....ix INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………………..1 CHAPTER ONE…………………………………………………………………………12 CHAPTER TWO……………………………………………………………………...…56 CHAPTER THREE…………………………………………………………………….114 CHAPTER FOUR……………….………………………………………………….…..164 CHAPTER FIVE……………………………………………………………………….216 CONCLUSIONS……………………………………………………………………….235 FIGURES…………………………………………………………………………….…241 REFERENCES…………………………..….………………………………………….337 CURRICULUM VITAE………………………………………………………………..372 viii LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE PAGE 1. Map of tenth-century al-Andalus………………………………………………...241 2. San Baudelio de Berlanga exterior……………………………………………….242 3. Floor plan of San Baudelio……………………………………………………….243 4. Santa María de Wamba …………………………………………………………..244 5. Floor plan of Santa María de Wamba…………………………………………….245 6. Map of multiple frontiers………………………………………………………....246 7. Plan of 11 th c. church of Sahagún…………………………………………….......247 8. Surviving wall…………………………………………………………………….248 9. San Cebrián de Mazote…………………………………………….……………..249 10. Chapel of San Mancio…………………………….……………….……………...250 11. Fortress of Simancas…………………………………….………….…………….251 12. Fortress of Gormaz………………………………………………….…………….252 13. San Millán de la Cogolla, Suso………………………….………………….…….253 14. Plan of building phases……………………………….…………………………..254 15. San Millán, interior……………………………………………………………….255 16. San Juan de la Peña…………………………………..……………………….…..256 17. Monastic floor plans……………………………….……………………………..257 18. San Juan de la Peña, lower church…………………………………………….…258 19. Reconstruction plan…………………………………………………….………...259 20. Altar niches……………………………………………………………………….260 ix 21. Cenotaph of San Millán…………………………………………………….…….261 22. Plan of San Millán caves……………………………………………………....…262 23. San Juan de la Peña, arcade…………………………………………………....…263 24. Twin apses………………………………………………………………....……..264 25. Southeast portal………………………………………………………….……….265 26. Subterranean spring………………………………………………...….…………266 27. Lower