Monastery of San Salvador de Leyre

Leyre was linked to the monarchy of Navarra and was the beneficiary of numerous donations from the monarchs over the years, which shows its importance, even more so if we consider that some of them were buried here. In this sense, the monastery even became a royal court for a time, when the Navarrese monarchy took refuge here due to the situation of war with Islam. On the other hand, Leyre also enjoyed a special link with the bishopric of Pamplona. In 924, Abd al-Rahman III destroyed that city, giving more prominence to the monastery, the figure of the abbot of Leyre and the bishop of Pamplona coincided in the same person.

The new situation was not well received by the community of Leyre and the lawsuits were continuous and exhausting. To defend their interests, the monks of Leyre did not hesitate to produce false documentation, but in the end, they had to admit the new circumstances. The monastery was weakened, and during the first half of the 13th century, the community consisted of only thirteen monks, which had previously numbered eighty. Its situation was further aggravated by the intervention of the Cistercians. Pope Gregory IX sent visitors to the monastery, but they introduced a Cistercian community, while the Benedictines were expelled. From 1269 it came under the control of the monastery of La Oliva and trials and confrontations of all kinds began between the Cistercians and Benedictines, and the differences did not end until much later, in 1306, with the monastery extremely weakened.

The most interesting building in the monastery complex is its church, the most outstanding feature of which is the smooth Romanesque apse. The crypt is a very characteristic construction, with several naves separated by powerful columns. The nave of the church is Gothic, Cistercian. The doorway, known as Porta Speciosa, is a 12th century work, with important sculptures.