Stroll down the hill from Puerta de Toledo and you can find the impressive and very decorative Toledo Bridge. This 180 metre long, nine arched structure, replaced two late 17th century wooden bridges, both destroyed by floods. It’s hard to imagine now, but the Manzanares river used to flood quite regularly until the canalisation works of the 20th century restricted the natural water flow. 

Built between 1718 and 1732, the bridge linked the main southern road out of Madrid with the city of Toledo, and provided a grand entrance into Carabanchel Alto where aristocrats had their summer mansions. The Spanish architect who designed it, Pedro De Ribera, also made the elaborate front entrance for the Hospital of San Fernando, now the Museum of the History of Madrid, and the Conde Duque barracks, now a cultural centre and library.

The bridge’s main decorative features are two limestone statues made in 1723 by the sculptor Juan Alonso Villabrille y Ron. They show the patron saint of Madrid, San Isidro, and his wife María. It’s appropriate that this statue is located on a bridge over the river as some of the miracles he is said to have performed are linked with water. 

Isidro de Merlo y Quintana was born in Madrid between 1070 and 1082 CE and spent his life as a farm labourer in the service of wealthy Madrilenian landowners, particularly Juan de Vargas who owned a lot of land along the river. Isidro was a devout Christian and shared what he had, even his meals, with the poor. 

He married Maria Torribia and they had one son called Illan. One day, their son fell into a deep well and at the prayers of his parents, the water of the well is said to have risen miraculously to the level of the ground, bringing the child with it, happily smiling and splashing away. This, the most famous of his miracles, is the one depicted in the statue on the bridge but is by no means the only one. While over 400 miracles have been attributed to him, only five actually happened when he was alive! These include praying while angels did his ploughing for him, multiplying the wheat supply and making a fountain of fresh water burst from the dry earth. 

He died around 1130 CE and was buried in a humble grave, but on April 2, 1212, after torrential rains had exposed bodies from several cemeteries in Madrid, his body was discovered in an apparent state of incorruptibility. Here is when the miracles really start to happen! In the same year his body was exposed,  Isidro is said to have appeared to Alfonso VIII of Castile as a shepherd, and guided his troops in a surprise attack against the Almohad army in the  Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, with this victory marking a turning point in the Christian ‘reconquest’ of Spain. 

Over the centuries the Spanish royal family would seek to be healed by his relics, including King Philip III of Spain who was cured of a deadly disease after touching the bones and as thanks replaced the old wooden reliquary with a costly silver one.  Hundreds of similar miracles later, Isidro was finally made a saint in 1622 and his remains are now in the San Isidro church on Calle de Toledo in the centre of Madrid. 

Tomorrow, the 15th of May, is his feast day, when Madrid has a huge party all across the city, but mainly focused on the San Isidro park on the south side of the Manzanares and visible from the Toldedo bridge. 
So do as the Madrileños do, grab your manila shawl, put a red carnation in your hair, enjoy a few rosquillas (tasty doughnuts with assorted toppings) and raise a glass to San Isidro!

It doesn’t even have to be water…..

La Alberca in the region of Salamanca is a place full of history. In its dark narrow streets sit sloping timber buildings dating from the 14th century onwards. This picture postcard village in Spain was the first to be given the status of a National Historical Monument by the government in 1940.

It’s a place of symbols, which hint at the local industries including honey and textiles; their coat of arms is decorated with a beehive and a spinning wheel. In a village with a rich Muslim and Jewish heritage, enduring Christian emblems are carved into the granite door lintels of the houses.

The crossed keys and papal tiara of the Vatican are joined by mottos including ‘Hail Mary, conceived without sin’. 

One of these symbols hides a darker past. Off the main square and opposite the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción, sits an unassuming wooden door. Above this door is carved a hand holding an olive branch, a cross and a sword. This is one of the symbols of the feared Spanish Inquisition, whose goal was to convert all Spain to the Catholic faith. This message would have been clear to the townsfolk of La Alberca: take up the cross and convert and we will offer you the olive branch of peace. If not, you will die by the sword.

This building was possibly the headquarters of the local Inquisition many centuries ago, however their story is seemingly not over yet. Around 10 years ago during the remodelling of this house, two bodies were found, reportedly in chains and sealed into the wall. I haven’t found any more information about this so far, so La Alberca still has many secrets to uncover behind its closed doors.