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THE
MALAGA CATHEDRAL IS ONE OF THE MOST PECULIAR MONUMENTS OF
SPAIN. THIS CATHEDRAL WAS BUILT OVER THE FORMER ALJAMA MOSQUE,
AND IT BRINGS TOGETHER DIFFERENT ARCHITECTURAL AND ARTISTIC
STYLES.
It took no less than 254 years to built
what we see today of the Málaga cathedral, because,
as the traveller can see on the main facade, the southern
tower is incomplete end it does not have roofing. This feature,
unique in its kind, is attributed to the deviation of funds
for liberal causes and in support of the United States Revolutionary
War. Thus, it is popularly known as "La Manquita"
(the little crippled).
 Construstion
of the Málaga Cathedral began after the Catholic
Monarchs conquered the city in 1487. The old mosque was
consecrated and trasformed for Christian worship. It had
five naves and 113 pillars with a rich ornamentation, a
luminous patio filled with orange trees, and galleries on
its sides. This building became too small for Christian
worship, thus a new temple was to be built. All that remains
from the first cathedral is the red brick wall of the north
facade. It occupied what today is the parish church and
its gardens. It is curious that the conquest of the province
by the Christian army is represented in the Toledo Cathedral.
Its choir stalls show the most important victories of the
Catholic Monarchs in the province: Málaga, Álora,
Archidona, Marbella, Benalmádena or Mijas.
The works for the present day cathedral began in 1527. Given
its Renaissance style, it could have been Diego de Siloé,
based on the Gothic plant by Enrique Egás, as at
that time they were both working on the Granada Cathedral.
In fact, this church is inspired on the Granada Cathedral,
and this in its turn, by the one in Toledo. During this
century, the works were adapted and reformed under the direction
of Andrés de Vandelvira and Diego de Vergara.
At the beginning of August 1588, when Luis García
de Haro was bishop, the finished area was consecrated, including
the Main chapel. But the foundations were still to be laid
for some of the naves and some of the facades were still
nor finished.
In the 17th century, construction began on the chancel,
after tearing down the old cathedral. But is was in the
18th century when the building received a good boost, given
the construction stage of the chancel and the danger of
the Chapter falling down.
Twenty years of the "Sisa Mayor", that is, of
the funds destined for the celebration of the Corpus, were
allotted to the construction, and this was then extended
year after year. Throughout the 18th century, the Renaissance
style of the preceding centuries was masterfully combined
with the Baroque style of the 18th century. The different
doors were finished in those years, and the towers were
worked on, although only one of them was finished. 
Closer to
Heaven.
To enter the Málaga Cathedral is to be closer to
Heaven. Religious buildings of that period in Europe were
conceived as an attempt to come close to the grandiosity
of God, thus the worshipper becomes small as soon as he
enters such a grandiose building, result of the Gothic distribution
of space. A monument to Christianity and to the concept
of triumphant church that has survived until our days to
watch over the Catholic faith of the malagueños.
 Once
inside the Málaga cathedral we must look upwards
and be amazed at such magnificence. In fact, it is one of
the most spectacular in Spain. Its columns rise with Renaissance
elegance, structuring space in two side naves and one spectacular
central nave. We may even consider it to be more dazzling
at night, when the stone becomes a celestial colour, thanks
to the exquisite and well-studied lighting. Inside, the
Orquesta Ciudad de Málaga sometimes plays a music
piece; an admirable experience, in which art blends with
the mystic and mysterious.
Strolling through the side naves, we will find the treasures
that are guarded jealously behind its walls. In the Gospel
nave are the chapels of the Saints Sebastian, Rafael and
José, which contain three carvings by Pedro de Mena,
among them the Cristo de la Buena Muerte. This nave also
contains the organ built by the master Julian de la Orden,
in perfect state of conservation. At the end of the nave
to the right, we find the main vestry, containing a magnificent
collection of Baroque paintings.
In the central nave, in front of the main altar or presbytery,
the beautidul columns adorned in Baroque style (16th century)
and the frescoes by Cesar Arbassia will captivate us. Behind
the 17th century pulpits, a semicircle leads us to different
chapels. the first, Cristo del Amparo, with paintings by
Juan Niño de Guevara and Luca Cambiasso (Sta. Agueda).
The Encarnación chapel is also worth mentioning,
with an altarpiece dating from 1785 and the Santa Bárbara
chapel, with a Gothic altarpiece from 1524 that was planned
for the mosque-cathedral.
 In
the Epistola nave we find the chapel of the Viegen de los
Reyes. Pedro de Mena is the author of this virgin that the
Catholic Monarchs donated afteer the conquest of Málaga.
There are also praying statues of the king and queen next
to the original altarpiece of the virgin and a painting
of the beheading of San Pablo, painted by Enrique Simonet
during his stay in Rome (1887). In this same nave is the
San Pelayo altarpiece (16th century) in the Sagrado Corazón
chapel, the Cristo Crucificado by Alonso de Mena and La
Dolorosa by Pedro de Mena, both in the los Caidos chapel.
As a wonderful end to the tour we can see the beautiful
work of this latter artist in the carvings of the higher
area of the choir stalls. The choir stall was made by Luis
Ortíz de Vargas and José Micael Alfaro. In
the 18th century, it was classified as the Eighth Wonder
of the World.
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