A Cogolludo is known and loved for its ducal palace above all. It is striking that in a small town perched on a hill in the Serranía of Guadalajara, at almost 900 meters above sea level, there is a building with such Florentine bearing and astonishing horizontality. It is also regarded as the first great civil work of the Renaissance in our country. But the same happens in Pastrana, in the Alcarria region, with the palace where the princess of Éboli was imprisoned. Or in Atienza, also mountainous, with its literary castle and the Arrebatacapas arch.
The reason for such patrimony in Cogolludo lies in the fact that it was the lordship of the Dukes of Medinaceli. Previously it had belonged to the bishops of Toledo, to the Order of Calatrava, and to the Mendoza. The palace in question was commissioned by the first duke, Luis de la Cerda y de la Vega, for his daughter Leonor. He entrusted it to Lorenzo Vázquez de Segovia, who spared no architectural flamboyance. By the historic year 1492 it was already completed.
Externally, the wall bears an elegant bossed masonry. A geometric pattern is interrupted only by the six double openings that rise as windows at the upper level. It is contrasted by a circular figure enclosing the shield of the House of Medinaceli. It bears the emblems of Isabel de la Cerda and Bernardo de Bearne, the first Counts of Medinaceli, a title granted in 1368 by Enrique II of Castile. Later, the county was elevated to a duchy by the grace of Isabel la Católica in 1479. Under the shield, which sets the scene for us, a Plateresque door flanked by columns and with lavish decoration. The ensemble is crowned, at the threshold of heaven, by a balustrade with flying tracery that is pure stone filigree.
A Renaissance Palace in Cogolludo
Inside it is impressive, but restrained. One should notice the exquisite Mudéjar plasterwork over the fireplace and the wooden ceiling of the Rich Hall, inspired by Arab alfarjes. Meanwhile, the central courtyard, of which the lower part is preserved, helps to imagine how life in the palace was. Around it were arranged the noble apartments. The Ducal Palace of Cogolludo captures the precise moment when Gothic is restrained and becomes Renaissance. Just it alone makes the trip worthwhile, a little under an hour and a half from Madrid.
The courtyard of Cogolludo’s palace still preserves its essence.
A este palacio pertenece la escultura romana de Zenón de Afrodisias, un artista anatolio que trabajó a mediados del siglo II d.C. La pieza fue descubierta en una excavación arqueológica y adquirida por los duques de Medinaceli, que poseían una colección de esculturas clásicas. Hoy puede verse en el Museo de Guadalajara, ubicado en otro palacio, el del Infantado, muy semejante al de Cogolludo, prácticamente coetáneos. Aquel fue mandado construir por Íñigo López de Mendoza y Luna, segundo duque del Infantado, y fue testigo de la boda de Felipe II con Isabel de Valois en 1560.
A Porticoed Plaza and Two Churches
Although the palace is the absolute protagonist, beside it stretches the porticoed Plaza Mayor, from the 16th century, where the town hall (18th century) stands, with its emblematic clock tower, and a Baroque fountain with four spouts. From here, having descended from the aristocratic heavens, one must tread the earthly narrow streets and let oneself be seduced by the charm of traditional architecture. Then, it is a matter of climbing again to the heights of its churches of Santa María (16th) and San Pedro (17th), the latter built on a Romanesque base and with interesting alabaster tombs.
Cogolludo has a porticoed Plaza Mayor.
The Church of Santa María, in addition to being a Renaissance jewel in itself, is noteworthy for housing inside a painting by José de Ribera, the Españoleto. It is Los preliminares de la crucifixión, also coming from the ducal palace and also from its Salón Rico, where it arrived via Antonio Juan Luis de la Cerda, VII Duke of Medinaceli, who had married Ana María Luisa Enríquez de Ribera y Portocarrero, niece of the viceroy of Naples, heir of the painting. The Ribera was a gift from the V Duke of Alba, Antonio Álvarez de Toledo, to his ancestor Fernando Enríquez, in 1626.
The Theft of the Ribera Painting
When the palace was dismantled in the 19th century, it was moved to this temple, from where it departed for the Prado Museum for restoration after the Spanish Civil War, in 1948. A year later it was back. Who could have imagined, then, that, on the early morning of October 18, 1986, some thieves would enter Santa María and carry off such a valuable treasure.
The Church of Santa María houses a painting by José de Ribera.
The painting was removed from the altarpiece, the frame and the panel were taken off, it was rolled up and nothing more was heard of it until the Police located it on June 13, 1987 in Bilbao, as the thieves were trying to cross the border. The theft is attributed to Erik the Belgian (1940-2020), one of Europe’s most prolific art thieves and a great plunderer, especially in Castilla y León, here in Spain. Before being returned to Cogolludo, the Ribera passed through Sigüenza. It was necessary to wait for the church to be restored and to meet the security conditions required to house it.
The Women’s Festival
After seeing the Medinaceli Palace, the porticoed square and the church, what remains are its five hermitages, though it once had 17, and the castle, from which the walls surrounding the town radiated. Barely the ruins of its Islamic tower and parts of the walls survive. It is the best place to see Cogolludo’s panorama. As for the best date to visit this Guadalajara town, without doubt it is February 5th. On that day the Feast of Saint Agatha is celebrated, when women take power and occupy the roles normally held by men.
Thus, a mayor for a day is chosen, the sash is placed on her and the baton of command is handed to her. A festival that was already celebrated in 1598, beginning with the ringing of the bells and continuing with the proclamation, the parade with giants and big-heads, and bands. The next day, there are parades, food, dancing and chocolate with biscuits. The women dress in their Alcarria costumes and distribute Saint Agatha bread. Once in Cogolludo, the route can be extended to Hita, Jadraque, or the towns of Black Architecture.
