AtlasIslamica
Legacy of Andalusia

Our Lady of La Palma Parish

The grand mosque of Algeciras was converted into the Christian Church

Algeciras, Spain

Coordinates: 36.130894, -5.447733

The Church of Our Lady of the Palm is a Roman Catholic church on the southwestern corner of the Plaza Alta in Algeciras, Spain.

The church is consecrated to Santa María de la Palma since Palm Sunday 1344 when Alfonso XI of Castile conquered the city after the Siege of Algeciras (1342-1344). That year, Pope Clement VI created the Diocese of Algeciras which was linked to that of Cadiz after he had converted the grand mosque of Algeciras, in accordance with Christian rites, into a church.

That city was, however, retaken by the Moors in 1368 and destroyed on the orders of Muhammed V of Granada. The Diocese of Algeciras disappeared with it.

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