Fortified religious buildings
Connected Sites
| Site | Rationale | Link |
| Avila | "At Ávila the cathedral was incorporated into the city wall" (wiki) | |
| Baroque Churches | Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion in Santa Maria | |
| Convent of Christ in Tomar | ||
| Durham Castle and Cathedral | Cathedral: "Durham Cathedral was also partly fortified and known as 'half fortress against the Scot'." | |
| Kraków | St. Andrew's Church, "a rare surviving example of the European fortress church used for defensive purposes" (wiki) | |
| M'Zab Valley | Each citadel has a fortress-like mosque, whose minaret served as a watchtower. | |
| Mount Athos | "The entire guarding and defending system was pointed towards the enemy coming from the sea. He came up against the fortification of the shore (fortified harbors and towers), then against the fortifications of the monasteries that could held out until the outside help arrived. During the Ottoman domination there was an army body to protect the monasteries." | |
| Mudejar Architecture of Aragon | fortified church of santa maría in tobed | |
| Novodevichy Convent | the whole complex is protected by Fortress-like wall | |
| Popocatepetl monasteries | "These monasteries were built very solid with thick walls and very austere. In some of the complexes, one can see stone merlons which make the complexes look like castles or forts. These were for defensive purposes as the monks were invading Mesoamerican lands to impose a new religion. For this reason, churches and monasteries of this type are called "fortress temples." (wiki) | |
| Potala Palace | ||
| Route of Santiago de Compostela | The monastery of Santa maría la real de Nájera, home to the Navarran Royal mausoleum is a classic example of a fortified church and an important stop on the Camino de Santiago in Spain. "The exterior of Santa María la Real shows characteristics of a fortified building...Defensive needs led to high walls and buttress with the function of bastions" (wiki) | |
| Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France | St. Avit Sénieur in the Dordogne | |
| Saint Catherine Area | Monastery | |
| Santa Cruz de Mompox | "The churches also served as forts in the earlier years of the city." | |
| Southern Öland | Hulterstad, Remso | |
| Trinity Sergius Lavra | Sergiev Posad - the whole complex is protected by Fortress (posad in russian means fortress) | |
| Upper Middle Rhine Valley | fortified church in Oberwesel | |
| Vall de Boi | "The tall towers of the churches served both to house the bells and to act as lookouts in case of attack. Alongside each of them is the walled village cemetery. The three belltowers of Boí, Taüll, and Erill la Vall are intervisible, a notable defensive feature." - AB Evaluation | |
| Villages with Fortified Churches | ||
| Wachau Cultural Landscape | Weissenkirchen Church | |
| Wudang Mountains | the upper complex is protected by high wall similar to the Beijing's Forbidden City | |
| Yaroslavl | The Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery in Yaroslavl was built to be a citadel in times of war. The monastery is surrounded by a thick 16th century, white-painted wall, complete with watchtowers and embattlements. |
Suggestions?
Do you know of another WHS we could connect to Fortified religious buildings?
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