Of baroque style, the Clerecía is the name given to the building of the former Royal College of the Holy Spirit of the Society of Jesus, built in Salamanca between the XVII and XVIII centuries. This building, which today houses the Pontifical University of Salamanca, was begun in 1617, by order of Queen Margaret of Austria and Philip III. Its objective was to be the main center for the formation of the Jesuits who would later be sent to the American colonies and the Protestant countries of central Europe. Later, after the expulsion of the Jesuits from Spain, the building passed to the Real Clerecía de San Marcos, hence the abbreviation Clerecía. Subsequently, the Clerecía ceded the building (except for the church) to the Diocese of Salamanca, which installed the Seminary of San Carlos. Continue reading “The Stairway to Heaven of the “Clerecía” of Salamanca”
