Synagogue of Santa Maria la Blanca

Still within Toledo’s former judería, you now stand before the Synagogue of Santa María la Blanca—one of the oldest synagogues in Spain. It was built in 1180 by mudéjar craftsmen, who were in fact Muslims remaining in the city after the Christian reconquest and who paid a tax for being non-Christians. Nearly a century later, in 1260, King Alfonso X granted the Jewish community exceptional permission to reconstruct this building and create what would become the largest and most beautiful synagogue in Spain. Funded by the city’s Jewish community and crafted by mudéjar artisans, the result was a magnificent masterpiece of architectural beauty that you can admire today. Known then as the Great Synagogue, it became the main place of worship for Toledo’s Jewish community. For over a century, Jews would come to study the Talmud, the cornerstone of rabbinic Judaism. However, this era of relative peace came to a violent end when, in 1355, the judería was attacked, escalating into the brutal pogroms of 1391, known as the “bloody baptisms.” These widespread massacres and forced conversions on Jews started in Seville before spreading throughout Castile and the Crown of Aragon. In 1405, amid continued persecution, the synagogue was converted into a Christian church. Today, Santa María la Blanca is no longer a place of worship but serves as a historical monument and museum. You must definitely see its beautiful interior of a dazzling white, with horseshoe-shaped arches resting on slender columns, which may remind you of a mosque. It still belongs to the Catholic Church and is officially recognized as a Spanish Property of Cultural Interest.