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Certainly one of the most emblematic buildings in the city of Toledo, built on the mosque of the largest Muslim city in time.
Since 1088 the Church Greater Toledo has the recognition of premiums on the other cathedral in the kingdom.Lacking, thus providing it with a decent seat, once removed the direct danger of Muslim invasions after the Christian victory in Navas de Tolosa in 1212. It occupies a place that always seems to be outside sacred, to be the site of the largest mosque, the cathedral Visigoth replacing it, possibly built on a previous application.
The construction of the current building began in 1226 remain archbishop of Rada Jimenez and under the reign of the Holy Ferdinand III. We know the names of the first master builders: Martin, who are due to traces of the plant to classic French Gothic style and his successor Petrus Petri. The floor of the temple is therefore Latin cross, called Lounge, for being registered in terms of a rectangle. The standard mark the cross, creating a vertical triangular shape, as the nave and transept are much greater width and height as the aisles, foreign ships being the lowest.
It is very interesting to climb to one of the towers in Toledo that allow discover the heights from the roofs of the cathedral, forming a perfect cross surrounded by air flying buttresses marked by slender pinnacles. Only then, or from the viewpoints of the Valley, you can appreciate the grandeur and complexity of this unique building, tucked in a hollow in the middle of the urban fabric.
The first was lifted in the area of the Main Chapel and the magnificent double ambulatory that surrounds joining the four aisles.It is only in Spain and very original settlement of its structure, preventing them from being too near the brackets. Each of the tranches in the form of trapeze shape that was divided into rectangles and triangles, giving rise alternately vaults with four three nerves, drawing X and Y in their high ceilings. This has allowed fifteen small chapels set for each section of the ambulatory, a square from the triangular floor and semicircular other. Over time some of these chapels have been transformed, two in corridors of entry to unique venues added to the temple: the Chapel of the Kings and New Chapter House, one was above the step to other units closed to the cathedral and six, Three unions, opened new chapels larger: the Santiago and San Ildefonso also emerging from the original plant.
The door's oldest temple is the north transept, inspired the corresponding gate of the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris, given the great importance that the French Gothic gave those tickets. The parteluz with the Madonna and Child introduces the theme of the scenes of Christ's life, carved on his eardrum. It is a kind of catechism in stone for the faithful of the thirteenth century. It should be read continuously starting at the bottom left corner from the ads until the Last Judgement and Transit of the Virgin at the top.
Following the scheme also French, at the foot of the temple should appear equal two towers, forming an H facade, but eventually only one was completed, the other being very menguada, possibly due to the adverse soil conditions. Its current dome stone is the beginning of the seventeenth century, covering the chapel of Corpus Christi, designed by mandate of Cardinal Cisneros to the recovery of Mozarabic rite, replaced by the Catholic, coinciding with the Christian conquest of Toledo, 1085.
 The tower, with its ninety meters high, was completed with the last body octagonal, topped with slate alcuzón and three crowns by maestro Hanequin of Brussels in the fifteenth century. In 1755 it was necessary to break the window Gemina's body bell to install the largest of the nine bells: Bell Gorda, izando its 17 tons of weight through pulleys and hoists installed for that purpose by 100 sailors coming from Cartagena. It cracked the first touch and was badajo changed the original three meters by another smaller. In each of the other eight bells: the Calderona, the incarnation, San Juan, Santa Leocadia, San Joaquin, Ascension or appalling Devils, San Ildefonso, San Felipe and the Resurrection has its hole in the body of bells.
The main facade has three gates, of Atonement or the Kings in the centre of the Palms of Hell or near the tower and the Write or Judgement bordering the Mozarabic Chapel.Another two are the aforementioned door of the north transept, call Fair, the Chapinería, Children Lost or Clock, placed it on behalf of Cardinal Lorenzana, in the late eighteenth century to mark the hours canons, hence only a pointing hand. And finally the Lions Gate, the southern transept, combining Gothic and Baroque sculptures, all of excellent quality.
However, the Cathedral of Toledo has more entries, two communicate with faculty, Presentation and Santa Catalina, and last, unusual for its location in the south wall, the neoclassical Llana Gate, the only one that has no steps . This modest door "service" that for centuries allowed to enter any quarrying and sculptures for the temple became the noble portico for the passage of the famous Custody, when it comes out majestically in Corpus Christi procession. Today is also the gateway for visitors. When you enter the cloister Gate Mollete and there are five other auxiliary doors in the walls of the structures added to the temple.
Much there is writing on the Cathedral and is not the place to develop an academic discourse on art from the thirteenth century until the nineteenth, since all the intermediate stages are present in it. Being in Toledo, the Islamic influence appears on the arches of lobulados triforium, several windows and the outside wall of the choir, different times, and until there is a taste entirely Muslim burial, without forgetting the amazing plaster of the door and roofs of the Chapter House and its prelude. The faculty, added in the fourteenth century, is of late Gothic style. Have character Gothic altarpiece of the High Altar, albeit already made in time of Cardinal Cisneros, involving much of the sculptors who then worked in the temple, as copine Holland, Sebastian de ALMONACID, Feipe of Vigarny Petit and Juan Under the leadership of the architects Enrique Egas and Pedro Gumiel. The artists painted and gold as important as John of Burgundy. The renaissance is sublimated into the gate and in the very Italian tomb of Cardinal Mendoza in the Main Chapel and the choir stalls high. It is the imposing neoclassical Sacristy, and the famed Transparent is the climax of Baroque more delirious eighteenth century.
For those who are left overwhelmed with numbers, one can cite the eighty-eight colossal pillars that hold seventy-two vaults, recently restored, whose height reaches up to 45 meters. The windows of most of the seven hundred and fifty windows, especially the rose window of the nave, the fourteenth century, impressive size and unique beauty, and the two of the transept, illuminate the temple with an aura of mystery and sanctity consistent with the Religious images and scenes they represented.
 The rich repertoire sculptural presence in every corner has functions and doctrinal teaching, in addition to the artistic. The chorus to foreign shows many scenes of Old Testament, and the Mayor of New Chapel. The eardrum outside the Puerta del Reloj and the altarpiece of the High Altar represent scenes from the life of Christ. In the columns that frame the various personalities appear Altarpiece of the Church, among which is often noted, unusual, the figures of the shepherd who helped the Christian armies defeat at the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, and the Alfaques Abu Walid , Leader of the Muslim community, who with his conciliatory spirit contributed to the peaceful coexistence after forced Christianization of the largest mosque, contrary to what has been agreed with Alfonso VI.
Doors and chapels cherish beautiful pictures, altars and tombs, the best works of artists, from John Guasa, Enrique Egas, Alonso de Covarrubias to Ventura Rodriguez, Mariano Salvatierra and Narciso Tome. The first three are among successive master builders of the cathedral, which also chose and hired other artists. The sculptures of the high seating of the choir is a sample passage, in the years 1540-1544, the mature serenity of Vigarny Philip, who died without being able to make the chair of Cardinals, the dynamism of the young Alonso of Berruguete. The alabaster figures of the top shows the genealogies of Christ, while the wooden sculptures to evoke the characters of the Old and the New Partnership, as well as several saints. But also a very special significance are the backs of chairs in the choir, showing successive conquests of the strengths of the Kingdom of Granada, as Torremolinos, Marbella or Velez, between 1483 and 1492. Rodrigo German began his development before concluding the war as early as 1489, at the initiative of Cardinal Mendoza, who actively took part in the events. So is the first chronicle of plastic today.
In addition, unique example of not explicitly religious themes in a cathedral choir, it implicitly, since the taking of Grenada was given character Crusade, religious war, the final triumph of Catholicism in Europe, not just a territorial conquest. The gates of the choir are Sunday from Cespedes, John French being the architect of the Mozarabic closing the chapel. And the monumental gates of the Capilla Mayor crowned with the imperial crest are Francisco de Villalpando, an architect who is known in 1552 in Spain the principles of Italian architecture, to translate the treaty by Sebastiano Serlio.
It is also very important set of paintings, especially the excellent collection kept in the sacristy, which has The Looting and the Apostolate of El Greco paintings by Caravaggio, Ticiano, Van Dyck, Goya, Morales, Rubens, Bassano and many more. It is worth mentioning apart from Burgundy and John Lucas Giordano, as their most outstanding paintings are the frescoes that are the walls of the Chapter House, in the case of the first, and the roof of the sacristy of the second.
In the chapel beneath the tower is exposed the treasure cathedral, with the imposing Custody by Enrique de Arfe composed of countless pieces as a Gothic lace filigree silver bathed in gold. It is the precious box for the real monstrance of the Holy Form, the latter of solid gold, belonging to the Catholic Monarchs. Once a year off city streets for the exaltation of faith during the secular procession of Corpus Christi.
At their sides are exposed valuable pieces of jewellery, as the crown of the Virgin of tabernacle, made with the headband of Isabel the Catholic, Cardinals and processional crosses, the Bible of St. Louis and a rich collection of rainwater layers, and other casullas elements of the solemn vestments of the Archbishops with rich embroidery. In addition to its wealth and excellent state of preservation impressed by the fact of having belonged to large characters, from Cardinal Infante Don Sancho, the fourteenth century, Cardinal Mendoza, Cardinal Cisneros and many other makers of Spain's history and its arts patron and letters.
Many archbishops and canons and several kings and queens are buried in various places throughout the cathedral and under the floor of four of the five vessels. On the graves of those who reached the dignity Cardinals are suspended their corresponding Capel. Only a slab is not identified with the name and titles and personal merits, "Pulvis. Cinis. CINIS.Nihil” – dust, ash, nothing, pray at the tomb of the powerful Cardinal Portocarrero, at the entrance to the Chapel of the tabernacle, which celebrates the worship of the Cathedral.
They have singular importance spaces added to the original plant to accommodate the primary functions of the Cathedral. It is the Chapel of Our Lady of the tabernacle, where worship is held before the altar with the image of the patron saint of the Gothic temple, which brings together numerous relics Ochavo, stored in boxes that are true works of art of goldsmithing, the Sacristy, such as art collection, the Kings New Chapel, which contains tombs of various monarchs, the Chapter House, where he met the canons, in a room that alone is a masterpiece. The faculty is going to the Chapel of San Blas, a place of eternal rest of the great Cardinal Pedro Tenorio, whose walls were restored recently its Gothic paintings. The faculty is repeated every August 15 Toledo the very habit of drinking the water of the Virgin "from the tanks of the Cathedral.
The cathedral was the impetus of a king and an Archbishop: Ferdinand III and the holy Rodrigo Jimenez radar. The first stone was laid in 1227, being its first architect, according to the opinion most likely a so-called Master happened to Matthew, Pedro Perez. The head of the temple was finished by the year 1238, and its latest vaults were closed in 1493.
 On August 14, 1389, became the first stone of the cathedral cloister low what direction, the largest teacher's Cathedral, Rodrigo Alonso. It is said that where this was built cloister, was the Alcaná, neighborhood where Jews Toledano maintained its top commercial activity, until the dates mentioned by Archbishop Pedro Tenorio managed to expel, there are people who say that there was an arson that destroyed the entire neighborhood.
The Gothic Cathedral of Toledo but mostly, introduced elements of other styles, in 1493 Toledo already possessed one of the most prominent Gothic cathedrals all over Spain, but the works would continue wearing the temple with different architectural styles.
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