Cámara Santa

The Kingdom of Asturias (Latin: Asturum Regnum; Asturian: Reinu d'Asturies) was a kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula founded by the Visigothic nobleman Pelagius. It was the first Christian political entity established after the Umayyad conquest of Visigothic Hispania in 718 or 722. That year, Pelagius defeated an Umayyad army at the Battle of Covadonga, in what is usually regarded as the beginning of the Reconquista. The Asturian kings would occasionally make peace with the Muslims, particularly at times when they needed to pursue their other enemies, the Basques and rebels in Galicia. Thus Fruela I (757–68) killed 40,000 Muslims but also defeated the Basques and Galicians, and Silo (774–83) made peace with the Muslims but not with the Galicians. Under King Alfonso II (791–842), the kingdom was firmly established with Alfonso's recognition as king of Asturias by Charlemagne and the Pope. He conquered Galicia and the Basques. During his reign, the holy bones of St James the Great were declared to be found in Galicia, in Compostela (from Latin campus stellae, literally "the field of the star"). Pilgrims from all over Europe opened a way of communication between the isolated Asturias and the Carolingian lands and beyond. Alfonso's policy consisted in depopulating the borders of Bardulia (which would turn into Castile) in order to gain population support north of the mountains. With this growth came a corresponding increase in military forces. The kingdom was now strong enough to sack the Moorish cities of Lisbon, Zamora and Coimbra. However, for centuries to come the focus of these actions was not conquest but pillage and tribute. In the summers of 792, 793 and 794 several Muslim attacks plundered Alava, and the heart of the Asturian kingdom, reaching up to the capital, Oviedo. In one of the retreats, Alfonso inflicted a severe defeat on the Muslims in the swampy area of Lutos, killing 70,000.When Alfonso II died, Ramiro I (842–50) staged a coup against the Count of the Palace Nepotian, who had taken the throne. After a battle on a bridge over the river Narcea, Nepotian was captured in flight, blinded and then forced into monastic life. Early in his reign, in 844, Ramiro was faced with a Viking attack at a place called Farum Brecantium, believed to be present-day Corunna. He gathered an army in Galicia and Asturias and defeated the Vikings, killing many of them and burning their ships. In 859, a second Viking fleet set out for Spain. The Vikings were slaughtered off the coast of Galicia by Count Pedro. The considerable territorial expansion of the Asturian kingdom under Alfonso III (866–910) was largely made possible by the collapse of Umayyad control over many parts of Al-Andalus at this time. Between the years 866 and 881, the western frontier of the kingdom in Galicia was expanded into the northern part of modern-day Portugal. The year 878 saw a Muslim assault on the towns of Astorga and León. The expedition consisted of two detachments, one of which was decisively defeated at Polvoraria on the river Orbigo, with an alleged loss of 13,000 men. In 881, Alfonso took the offensive, leading an army deep into the Lower March, crossing the Tagus River to approach Mérida. Then miles from the city the Asturian army crossed the Guadiana River and defeated the Umayyad army on "Monte Oxifer", allegedly leaving 15,000 Muslim soldiers killed. Returning home, Alfonso devoted himself to building the churches of Oviedo and constructing one or two more palaces for himself. The Kingdom of Asturias transitioned into the Kingdom of León in 924, when Fruela II of Asturias became king with his royal court in León.

The Metropolitan Cathedral Basilica of the Holy Saviour or Cathedral of San Salvador (Spanish: Catedral Metropolitana Basílica de San Salvador, Latin: Sancta Ovetensis) is a Roman Catholic church and minor basilica in the centre of Oviedo, in the Asturias region of northern Spain. The Cathedral of San Salvador of Oviedo today displays an array of architectural styles, from Pre-Romanesque to Baroque, including Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance parts.

San Vicente de Oviedo is a church and monastery in Oviedo, Spain. Its foundation, in 761, is recorded in a charter known as the Pacto monástico de Oviedo ("Monastic Pact of Oviedo") a copy made in the 12th century of the original that is dated 25 November 781 and is considered the earliest document on the monarchy of the Kingdom of Asturias, although doubts exist as to the veracity of this document since the monastery, also called Antealtares in the Middle Ages, is not mentioned again until 969. According to the charter of 781, twenty years before, in 761, the monks Máximo, with his serfs, and Fromestano, founded a church in locum quod dicunt Oveto (the place called Oveto), which was to become the city of Oviedo. Fromestano and Maximo are considered the founders of the city and church. Fromestano in the charter of 781, describes its founding: I, Frómista (Fromestano), abbot for the past twenty years, together with my nephew Máximo the monk, settled in this place, abandoned and uninhabited, founding a basilica in honor of Saint Vincent, a martyr of Christ and a deacon. Transformed into a monastery, the first abbot was Oveco, documented between 969 and 978, and the first reference mentioning that it followed the Benedictine Rule is dated in 1042.The style of the building is Romanesque, although reworked in the 11th and 12th centuries. Its cloister is an official National Historic and Artistic Monument and since 1952 houses the Archaeological Museum of Asturias.

The Church of Saint Thyrsus (Spanish: Iglesia de San Tirso; or Iglesia de San Tirso el Real de Oviedo) is a Roman Catholic Asturian Romanesque church situated in Oviedo, in Asturias, northern Spain. The church was established in the 790s. Dedicated to Saint Thyrsus, it was built by Tioda, the royal architect of Alfonso II of Asturias. The Great Fire of Oviedo in 1521 and rebuilding in the 18th century removed most of the original church, except for a three-light window.

The Iglesia de Santa María La Real de La Corte (Spanish: Iglesia de Santa María de la Corte) is a church in Oviedo, Asturias, Spain. It was established in the mid 16th century.

The Museum of Fine Arts of Asturias (Spanish: Museo de Bellas Artes de Asturias) is a museum in Oviedo, Asturias, Spain. It is situated within three buildings: the Palacio de Velarde, the House of Oviedo-Portal, and the House of Solís-Carbajal. The museum was conceived on 13 June 1844, by Royal Decree, and inaugurated 19 May 1980, from the art collection owned by the former province of Oviedo. It now depends on funding from the Culture Department of Asturias, and the City of Oviedo. An expansion project is underway by the museum's architect, Francisco Beloqui Mangado.

The Monasterio de San Pelayo is a convent for women of the Benedictine order, located in the city of Oviedo, Spain. It is also known as the monastery of the pelayas. The monastery was founded by King Alfonso II of Asturias (the chaste), and first dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, but later to Saint Pelayo martyr, whose relics were supposedly acquired in 994 by the monastery. The monastery stands near the Cathedral of Oviedo. Mostly remodeled after the 16th century, losing most of its original romanesque elements, including the church designed in 1590 by Leonardo de la Cajiga.

Capilla de la Balesquida is a church in Asturias, Spain. The church was established in 1232.

Camposagrado Palace is a baroque and Neo-classical palace located in the town of Oviedo, in Asturias, Spain. The building dates back to the eighteenth century and was built for the Marquis de Camposagrado, José Manuel Bernaldo de Quirós.The architecture is an integration of styles and architects. Typically for urban palaces, it is a square building organized around a courtyard, with four façades of masonry walls lined with sandstone blocks and decorated with traditional quoins at the corners. The lower level was begun by Francisco de la Riva Ladrón de Guevara around 1728 and is principally built in the Baroque style. The upper floor began in 1744 by the architect Pedro Antonio Menéndez de Ambás and is distinguished by the Neo-Classical style, articulated with Ionic columns and rusticated blocks at the corners. The building has dual entryways—one from the side of Valdecarzana Palace on San Juan Street and the other from Porlier Square. Both entrances led to massive staircases heading upwards.In 1934, during social upheaval of the Asturian miners' strike of 1934, the building was burned and had to be rehabilitated. The architect Enrique Rodríguez Bustelo completed the repairs and on 26 May 1943 it was declared a historic monument.It presently houses the Regional Court of Asturias.

Iglesia de San Isidoro (Oviedo) is a church in Oviedo, Asturias, Spain. It was opened in 1587.

Oviedo (UK: , US: , Spanish: [oˈβjeðo]; Asturian: Uviéu [uˈβjeʊ]) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains the city. Oviedo is located approximately 24 km (15 mi) southwest of Gijón and 23 km (14 mi) south of Avilés, both of which lie on the shoreline of the Bay of Biscay. Oviedo's proximity to the ocean of less than 30 kilometres (19 mi) in combination with its elevated position with areas of the city more than 300 metres above sea level causes the city to have a maritime climate, in spite of its not being located on the shoreline itself.

The siege of Oviedo was a siege in the Spanish Civil War that lasted from 19 July until 16 October 1936. The town garrison, under the command of Colonel Antonio Aranda Mata, took sides for the Nationalist uprising and held out until relieved by a Nationalist force from Galicia.