Explore the neighborhood of La Seu in Valencia, the oldest in the city.

The neighborhood of La Seu in Valencia, center of Valencian life

This neighborhood, the La Seu neighborhood of Valencia, is the oldest in the city and has been since its origin the center of social, religious, political, and military life. And it has continued to be so throughout the more than 2,000 years of the city’s history. Passing through Roman, Visigoth, Muslim, and Christian periods. Until the 19th century, when the city council was moved from Plaza de la Virgen to its current location. From that moment on, Plaza del Ayuntamiento also became the civic and social center of Valencia.

Come and explore with us the most curious corners of the La Seu neighborhood in Valencia. The historic center of Valencia has a rich cultural heritage, including two UNESCO World Heritage sites: the Water Tribunal and the Silk Exchange. Discover with our guided tours in Valencia a city that will surprise you by traveling more than 2,000 years back in time.

Origin of the La Seu neighborhood

It is called the La Seu neighborhood because the Valencia Cathedral, or Seu de Valencia, is located in it. It is located within the district of Ciudad Vella.

Since it is the oldest neighborhood in Valencia, its boundaries approximate those of Roman and Visigoth Valentia. These would be articulated around the streets of Avellanas, Mar, Corregería, Serranos, and the old course of the Turia River.

Origin of the La Seu neighborhood and the city of Valencia

Our city was founded with the name of Valentia in 138 B.C. It was founded by Roman soldiers who were rewarded with these lands under the command of the Roman Consul Decimus Junius Brutus. It is in the La Seu neighborhood where they settled, and therefore, this is the origin of the city.

Why this place?

The Romans chose this place for several reasons. It was a river island, close to the sea, facilitating the transport of goods by sea and therefore maritime trade, and it was also a strategic point in the Mediterranean. On the other hand, being an island offered some protection against the enemy.

Access to water is fundamental for any settlement, and here there could have been springs or wells since water was even more important for the Romans. In fact, there are several elements they built related to water. Opposite the thermal baths, located in the west, was the sanctuary of Asklepios, dedicated to the worship of water and its divinities.

In addition to all this, this place was located right where the Via Augusta passed on its way to Cadiz (Gades) from Rome.

The center has always been the center

The city was organized around the intersection between the Cardo (north-south axis) and the Decumanus (east-west axis). Nowadays, this intersection would correspond to the archaeological center of La Almoina.

After the destruction of the city of Valentia by the troops of Pompey in 75 B.C., it was not refounded until almost a century later. It was then, with Imperial Rome, that a major urban restructuring was undertaken. With it, the forum, where we find the political center with the curia, the judicial center with the basilica, and the religious center with the temple. Additionally, a Roman circus was built, located to the east, for chariot races.

With the arrival of the Visigoths in the 6th century, the forum continued to be the center of the city. Around it, the temple was located (where the Valencia Cathedral is today), and other key elements of the society of the time.

When the Muslims settled in Valencia in the 8th century, the great mosque replaced the previous Byzantine temple. The Arab fortress was located in Almudín. The royal pantheon in the current Plaza de la Almoina, and the medina around Plaza de la Reina to the west. Therefore, the center of Muslim life remained the same as for their ancestors.

The Water Tribunal

One of the most important things that Muslims left us and that still survives to this day is the Water Tribunal. It meets every Thursday for over 1,000 years at the Gothic gate of the Cathedral at 12:00 noon. It is the oldest legal institution in all of Europe. It is a court that settles matters related to the use of water and irrigation from the Turia River canals. Its legal validity is absolute, and its judgments are final. In addition, everything is done orally, in Valencian, and nothing is written down. It is recognized as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. Valencia also has two other UNESCO World Heritage sites: the Silk Exchange and the Fallas.

The La Seu neighborhood and its main monuments

For anyone coming to Valencia, a guided tour of the La Seu neighborhood is a must-visit. Around the La Seu neighborhood, we find some of the most representative and important monuments and buildings in Valencia’s history.

MILITARY CENTER

As an example of military Gothic architecture, we find the Serranos Towers. Along with those of Quart, they are the only defensive gates and entrances to the city that have been preserved out of a total of 12 that were in Valencia to protect the city for over 500 years.

POLITICAL CENTER

Regarding political life, we can visit the headquarters of the Valencian Courts, located in the Benicarló Palace or Palace of the Borja. It was built in the 15th century as the residence of the Borja family in Valencia. In medieval times, the importance and wealth of a family were also measured by the dimensions of the façade of their buildings. This building has a lot of façade but is not deep. From the 19th century, it passed into the hands of the Count of Benicarló. It is worth noting that it was the seat of the government of the Second Spanish Republic when Valencia was the capital of the Republic.

Also located in the La Seu neighborhood is the seat of the Valencian government, located in the Palau de la Generalitat. It originates from the 15th century, and its artistic style is late Gothic. It arose from the need to manage the kingdom’s funds and have a place for the deputies of the Generalitat to meet. Its structure corresponds to that of the Valencian Gothic palaces. Its dependencies are articulated around a central courtyard. The building consists of a central body and two towers. It is curious to note that although both towers seem to belong to the same period, they do not. The tower facing Plaza de la Virgen is from the 16th century, while the one facing Plaza de Manises was built in the mid-20th century.

RELIGIOUS CENTER

Regarding religious life, there are many temples in the La Seu neighborhood. Among the most representative are the Cathedral and the Basilica of the Virgin of the Forsaken.

• Cathedral. In Gothic style, with later expansions. Highlighting the altarpiece of the main altar painted by Fernando Yánez de la Almedina, a disciple of Leonardo da Vinci, the Chapel of the Holy Chalice, the one of San Francisco de Borja, with paintings by Goya. And the Cathedral Museum with its crypt and its spectacular Custody, one of the largest in Spain.
  
   
  
• Basilica of the Virgin of the Forsaken. Dedicated to the patron saint of the city, built in the 17th century in Baroque style. Inside, the frescoes on the dome painted by Antonio Palomino stand out. Considered one of the most notable figures in Spanish painting from the 17th to the 18th centuries. In them, Palomino shows us a great celestial vault that leaves no one indifferent. One of the great works he leaves in Valencia.
  
   
  
• Church of Santa Catalina. This temple is one of the 10 parish churches founded during the reconquest of Valencia by Jaume I. In its place stood a Muslim temple. In Cistercian Gothic style, its bell tower also stands out, one of the most original examples of Baroque in our architecture.
• Church of San Nicolás de Bari and San Pedro Mártir. One of the most emblematic churches in the city of Valencia, which has recovered its splendor after a complicated and spectacular restoration that was completed earlier this year 2016. San Nicolás and its Baroque frescoes captivate all its visitors. The church maintains its 15th-century Gothic structure but is completely covered with Baroque frescoes from the 17th century, with an extension of almost 2,000 square meters (more than the 800 square meters of the Sistine Chapel), made by Antonio Palomino and his disciple Dionís Vidal. Known as the «Valencian Sistine Chapel,» a nickname given by Gianluigi Colalucci, chief restorer of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican Basilica.
  
   
  
• Church of San Esteban. It is one of the first Christian churches built on a mosque. According to Gaspar Esclano, there may have been a Roman temple in its place. This temple has undergone several interventions over the years. The elaborate Baroque decoration of its interior from the 17th century with plasterwork and stucco stands out. It was the baptism site of San Vicente Ferrer.
• Church of San Lorenzo. Likewise, this temple was also one of the first parishes after the reconquest built on an old mosque.
• Church of the Holy Christ of the Savior. It was also one of the first churches after the reconquest built on an old mosque.

SOCIAL CENTER

The most influential nobles and people of the time also resided in the La Seu neighborhood. That is why the neighborhood has numerous palaces and manor houses. Let’s mention some of them.

• Palace of the Marquis of the Scala and the Bailía
• Palace of the Catalá de Valeriola
• Berbedel Palace
• Almirante Palace
• Archbishop’s Palace

The Almudín. It is a medieval building that would be located on the Muslim Alcázar. Its function would be to store wheat and grain for the city of Valencia.

La Almoina. It would correspond to a charitable institution and would be located in the square that bears its name.

The City Hall. Until the 19th century, it was located where the gardens of the Palau de la Generalitat are today. But due to its conditions, it was moved to its current location, in Plaza del Ayuntamiento.

If you want to know the details of the history of the origin of the city of Valencia by touring its oldest neighborhood, La Seu, contact us. With our guided tours in Valencia and with our official guides, we will show you in an entertaining way all this and much more.