Barrio Santa Cruz is another important component of Sevilla's history. I have been through part of this neighborhood before, but on Wednesday I was able to explore these streets a little more and learn about its significance to the city. First of all, one thing that is heavily emphasized both in and out of the classroom is that Andalucia is a mixture of three prominent cultures: Muslim, Jewish, and Christian. Historically, Spain reached a climax in culture, wealth, and power when these three cultures lived together peacefully. During these harmonious years (under the rule of Muslim Moors), Barrio Santa Cruz was a thriving Jewish Quarter (Judería). Our guide explained the history of Sevilla's Jewish population and told us the legend of Don Juan as we weaved between houses. Similar to Córdoba's Jewish quarter, the streets here are so narrow that no motor vehicles are allowed and it is almost uncomfortable to walk side by side with someone. Here, the concept of street does not exist, it is merely a space between houses. This does serve an important purpose though, the narrow streets keep the neighborhood shaded and cool during the blistering hot Sevillan summer. Similarly, most of the houses are white washed (like many communities throughout southern Spain) to keep the houses cooler. Also, the larger homes proudly display their family's interior courtyard so that people passing by can observe the beauty of their flowers, plants, and fountains through a wrought iron door.
First, let me tell you about the famous legend that is said to have taken place in Barrio Santa Cruz. A little background information: in Spanish, is you describe a guy by saying he is a "Don Juan," that means is essentially a womanizer. Well, according to locals and the monuments here, Don Juan eternal life story occurred in these plazas. To begin, in the first plaza there was a statue of this famous (probably fictional) 17th century citizen. The story is that there was a bet with his best friend that he couldn't win the love of two women at once. Needless to say, Don Juan proved him wrong. This infuriated the friend (who was dating one of the women) and the father of the other woman, Doña Inez (who was set to marry Don Juan). Both men attacked Don Juan and in defense he killed them and was forced to leave Spain because of it. Suddenly the story between Juan and Inez (whose house we also saw) was one of impossible love. Now, I'm not really sure why the Sevillanos wanted this story to be based here, but it is (and the tour guide was totally not understanding my question, so it is a mystery to me). Another famous but real person born in Barrio Santa Cruz is Bartolomé Murillo - one of Spain's most loved painters. I saw many of his religious-themed paintings during my visit to the Museo de Bellas Artes earlier. It is actually very lucky that the museum even has these works. In addition to wanting to conquer all of Europe, Napoleon was an art enthusiast. In Italy, he took a special liking to Murillo's pieces, so while invading Andalusia, his troops also took any Murillo painting they could find. However, the churches of Sevilla hide their art possessions for many years, which is why the Sevilla still holds a large amount of religious Murillo pieces. Finally, the tomb of this Sevillano artist is buried somewhere beneath the brick streets of the Plaza de la Santa Cruz (our next stop).
When the Christians took power, the originally allowed religious freedom and protection to the Jews, but were confined to only one walled neighborhood. Parts of these walls remain today as the are situated next to the walls surrounding the gardens of Alcázar. In this neighborhood there were four important synagogues. One was converted to the church of Santa Maria La Blanca, but the biggest synagogue was located in Plaza de la Santa Cruz. Keep in mind that the name of this plaza, which is essential to the name of the barrio, was not given until the Christian Reconquista. The synagogue converted church was ultimately destroyed by Napoleon's troops and is remembered by an iron cross monument. Continuing through the maze, we got to Plaza de los Venerables. Now a museum, the large Baroque-style Hospital of the Venerables was once a hospital retirement home for priests. It later became a care site for all citizens until the Hospital de la Caridad opened. However, both are now museums because of their rich architecutre, history, and art collection - both have Velasquez pieces. Another born and raised Sevillano painter that moved to Madrid when he was asked to paint for the royal court (an incredible honor).
The more tragic history of la Judería took place before Alfonso 13th took throne. Since Alfonso was not of age, there was a transition time that was very problematic. At this time, Jewish citizens of Sevilla were very successful and financially stable because they had good jobs in the city. One of the Catholic priests organized a group to attack the families of this neighborhood and the result was horrible. Although Alfonso immediately punished this priest when he was able to accept the crown, the Jewish community was still enraged and organized a rebuttal. However, one of their own daughters, Susona, committed treason that ended with countless more deaths of her community.
Continuing on in our tour, we walked through a short tunnel that lead us to a red colored wall that I recognized as surrounding the Alcázar gardens. Here we saw a pretty fountain named Agua de Sevilla. This is important because it is where the water from the Roman aqueducts came. Only the royal palace and very wealthy citizens had the privilege of drinking this water. Also, I have seen parts of the original aqueducts still preserved and scattered randomly about Sevilla (like in Nervión). Walking through the Patio de Banderas we had an incredible view of the Cathedral and Giralda - I take so many pictures of these two sites, but they never get old. This is where someone visiting the royal home would enter with a horse parade and flags of their country were flown. Our last stop is a hidden gem in Sevilla. Just one block in from the crowded streets surrounding the cathedral is Plaza Santa Marta. This plaza is incredibly quiet and peaceful with a single monument of a cross.
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