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Leon - Nicaragua

A City Nourished by History
 

Situated at a distance of almost 90 kilometers northwest of Managua (the capital of Nicaragua), on the Río Chiquito, the city of León stands as a grand illustration of what colonial legacy means in Nicaragua. León is the second greatest city “equipped” with impressive colonial architecture, after Granada.

The present-day location of the city is not, in fact, the same with the initial setting of León. In the beginning, the location of the city was at a distance of 25-30 kilometers from the current site, near the Momotombo Volcano. León – or León Viejo (Old León) – had been established in 1523. However, almost a century later, in 1610 more precisely, an eruption of the Momotombo Volcano destroyed the colonial location. Subsequently, the town was abandoned and moved to its current site.

Nowadays, León is renowned mainly for its churches and for the intellectual atmosphere that pervades the whole town. One of the most impressive churches is La Recoleccción, situated on Calle de los Bancos (Banks Street), among several banks in León. La Recolección is easily identifiable by its dark yellow, almost titian color and by its height. The Latin American baroque style of its frontage combines with the neoclassical design of the altar and the naves of the church. La Recolección is more than 200 years old, if we consider the year when its construction began: 1786.

San Juan Bautista de Sutiava church is more massive than La Recolección. Its location is facing the Plaza Central del Barrio Indigena de Sutiava (the Central Plaza of the Sutiava’s Native District), in the western part of León. Its construction began earlier than that of La Recolección, in 1698, and it even ended earlier than the year when La Recolección had its first stone placed, namely in 1710.

Similar to La Recolección, the frontage of this church is also built in baroque style. Otherwise, the general architecture of the church connects the style of the nascent colonial period with that of the baroque era. Its pillars, beams and altars are splendidly carved in wood, a fact which allows the general reference to the church of San Juan Bautista de Sutiava as “the cathedral made of wood”.

The churches of La Merced, San Francisco, El Calvario and San Pedro are other churches worth visiting when in León. However, the greatest monument of architecture in León is the Cathedral of León, the largest in the entire Central America. Its construction expanded for the period of over a century and what resulted – and it is still preserved nowadays – is an abundantly ornate architectural monument. Ruben Dario, the national poet of Nicaragua, is buried here. Visitors have access to the rooftop of the Cathedral, from where a splendid view of León is made possible, even La Recollección can be seen from here. Also, three of the seven cellars of the Cathedral are open for the public. In each of the “explorations” through the impressive Cathedral, the visitors are generally accompanied by a tour guide. Natural light in the Cathedral is extraordinary.

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