Undoubtedly, the starting point for the tour of the medieval city has to be the finest example of Spanish Romanesque military architecture and unique example of medieval construction: the city walls, built in granite and which provided military defence, a fiscal boundary and support for other types of architecture.
In the case of the Romanesque temples, a more ‘manageable’ type of stone was used to carve the delicate filigree sculptures: known locally as caleña, it is a type of sandstone that is a common feature of Ávila’s Romanesque style. Attached to the interior of the wall is the Episcopal Palace, the oldest example of civil architecture in the city. Opposite stands the Cathedral, designed to serve as a temple and fortress and considered to be Spain’s first Gothic cathedral.
This route includes the following sites of interest: Ávila City Walls and Gates, the Episcopal Palace, Ávila Cathedral, the Church of San Pedro, Nuestra Señora de la Antigua, the Church of La Magdalena, the Church of Santo Tomé el Viejo, the Basilica of San Vicente, the Church of San Andrés, the Church of San Martín, the Church of Santa María de la Cabeza, the Chapel of San Segundo del Río Adaja, the Church of San Esteban, the Church of San Nicolás, the Parish Church of San Juan Bautista, the Parish Church of Santiago and the Chapel of Nuestra Señora de las Vacas.
