Carmona History
Carmona was, at one stage of its history, the capital of a Moorish
Taifa kingdom, and the prolonged presence of the Moors on its
soil can today be appreciated not only in the charming Patio de
los Naranjos or Orange Tree Patio adjoining the Church of Santa
María and in the horseshoe arches of the Almohad Puerta
de Sevilla Alcazar, but also in the town's street plan and whitewashed
buildings.
The Middle Ages made a significant contribution to present-day
Carmona. It was much loved by King Peter I, who gave the town
a renovated Mudéjar Alcazar, which stands in the upper
part of the town, now refurbished as a Parador de Turismo, a state-run
hotel. The Mudéjar perido also bequeathed some of Carmona's
most beautiful, evocative churches, such as the Church of San
Felipe, and a number of houses and palaces. The town flourished
in the Gothic period, the finest example of which is Carmon's
main church, Santa María, which is of cathedral - like
proportions featuring high - ceiling naves and the inevitable
presence of other styles: the altar, for example, is an impressive
contribution from the Plateresque period. The entire spectrum
of styles and schools is represented in this town dotted with
splendid palaces and convents. One of these, the Convent of Santa
Catalina, is now a striking market square, an enormous porticoed
patio, where the redness of the stone and the whiteness of whitewashed
walls dominate, as they do throughout Carmona. Another is the
Convent of Santa Clara, whose tuns, remaining fatihful to tradition,
preserve the well-kept secret of medieval confectionary under
niveous arches. San Bartolomé also dates from the Gothic
period.