Paris1972-Versailles2003

I take you back to my dear Madrid to heaven and a hole in the sky to look down on it everyday !!! This church is in a popular area but seldom visited I just went by once and took a peek and was impressed, looking forward to be back for up close and personal visit, However, glad found me some pictures in my cd rom vault that should be in my blog for you and me, Therefore, let me take you on the Church San Martin de Tours of Madrid !!! Hope you enjoy it as I,

The Church of San Martín de Tours is located on Calle del Desengaño,26 overlooking the Plaza de Santa María de Soledad Torres Acosta aka Plaza de la Luna, making it one of the most centrally located churches in Madrid, just a few meters from Gran Vía and Plaza de Callao.

The main façade faces Calle Desengaño. It has a strong monumental character, even within the Escorial style that prevailed in 17C Madrid architecture. This façade is structured in two sections, with the central section crowned by a triangular pediment and the lateral sections by prismatic towers. It is one of the most outstanding Baroque façades preserved in Madrid, after the destruction of many others during various events such as the Confiscation of Church Property and the Spanish Civil War.

The Church San Martin de Tours is build with a Latin cross floor plan, a transept with short arms, side chapels, and a deep presbytery; it is a prototypical example of a Baroque church from the courtly school. The interior is simple and airy, although with elegant details, such as the corbels supporting the cornice, the pilasters, and the balcony-like galleries overlooking the nave. Little of the original furnishings survive. The main altar is decorated with a Neo-Renaissance altarpiece, presided over by a relief depicting Saint Martin of Tours and the beggar. Several images and altarpieces, mostly of modern origin, are distributed throughout the chapels.

A bit of history tell us that the parish of San Martín was one of the oldest in the Malasaña barrio or district of Madrid. It was originally located in the Plaza de las Descalzas, opposite the Royal Monastery of the same name, being the church of the homonymous monastery founded in the 12C as a Benedictine monastery. During the reign of Jose I Bonaparte, and fulfilling the king’s mandate to open up open spaces in the center of the city, the church was demolished. The name and tradition of the parish were transferred to the current church in 1836, during the Mendizábal confiscations, occupying what had previously been the Portacoeli Convent of the Congregation of the Regular Minor Clerics , founded in 1648. Previously in 1809, the two convents that this order had in Madrid had been merged into this one: the Convent of the Holy Spirit on Carrera de San Jerónimo (currently the Palacio de los Diputados or Congress Palace-see post) and Portacoel Convent of Minor Clerics founded in 1648.

The young girl Alexia González-Barros, proclaimed venerable by the Catholic Church, is buried in this church. She became more widely known through the Spanish film Camino by Javier Fesser, released on October 17, 2008, in Spain, and inspired by Alexia’s life. Ramón Gómez de la Serna was also baptized in this church in 1888. He was a prolific Spanish avant-garde writer and journalist, generally associated with the Generation of 1914 or Novecentismo, and a pioneer of the literary genre known as the greguería ( is a short statement, usually one sentence, in which the author expresses a philosophical, pragmatic, or humorous idea in a witty and original way. A greguería is roughly similar to an aphorism or a one-liner joke in comedy).

Currently, after a renovation carried out in the 1990s, which also included the surrounding area, it is the Eucharistic Temple of Saint Martin of Tours and the headquarters of the Diocesan Women’s Nocturnal Adoration Society of Madrid. The temple was inaugurated in 1997. Other than walking from Gran Via take Calle de Concepcion Arenal to Calle del Desengaño and the church or you can get to the church on Metro Callao lines 3 and 5, Gran Vía lines 1 and 5, Noviciado line 2, and Sol lines 1, 2 and 3, Also ,Renfe Cercanias or Commuter Rail at Sol station on lines C3, C4, C4a and C4b,

The Madrid tourist office on the Church San Martin de Tours : https://www.esmadrid.com/en/tourist-information/iglesia-de-san-martin

The official Adoracion Nocturna Femenina Española (Spanish Female Nocturnal Adoration) on the church: http://anfesanmartin.org/Templo-Eucar-stico-Diocesano-San-Mart-n-de-Tours/Historia-del-Templo/

There you go folks, another wonderful nostalgic, sentimental trip to my dear Madrid , always nostalgic sentimental words cannot describe it ! This is a vibrant cosmopolitan city of friendly faces and smiles to share in long conversations about life and more ; I love it, We will be back ,eventually!,  Again, hope you enjoy this post on the Church San Martin de Tours of Madrid !!! as I

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!