Tafalla - Navarra Media

Tafalla, "the flower of Navarre"

Tafalla, ‘the flower of Navarre’, stretches along the banks of the River Cidacos, whose water is used to irrigate the market garden crops for which the town is known. The town’s narrow streets are riddled with grand buildings that convey the importance of this town’s historic past.

They include the Church of Santa María, originally dating back to the Middle Ages, but whose current structure was built in the 16th and 17th centuries. Its inside is home to one of the gems of the Navarrese Romanesque, the high altarpiece, one of the most important works of Master Juan de Anchieta. The carving of San Sebastián to which miracles have been attributed is also there. The history of the Church of San Pedro is similar, as it was built in the style associated with the Catholic Monarchs, renovated in the 14th century and extended in the 16th.

Reasons to visit Tafalla

Other religious buildings such as the Shrine Chapel of San Nicolás, in the proto-Gothic style with Cistercian influences, or the former Capuchin convent from the 18th century and now the Church of Los Escolapios, are also noteworthy. The Convent of Conceptionists Recollects, a gift in the last will and testament of the Countess of Gendulain in the 17th century to whose palace it is connected by an arch, contains one of the most important works of Navarrese Mannerism.

The magnificent palaces such as the aforementioned one of the Counts of Guendulain or of Mencos, the one of the Marquis of Feria and of Sosierra, are remarkable.

The Royal Palace of Navarre, which Charles III the Noble of Navarre had built as the court’s summer residence, remains in the memory on some plans and in early accounts. Legend has it that there were underground tunnels connecting it with the Olite Palace. Its site is now home to the Plaza de Navarra square and the Town Hall.

Since 1418, Tafalla has celebrated its February Fair, a privilege granted by King Charles III, who may have wanted this town to become one of the most important. It was also strategically placed on the crossroads of trade routes, which gave it a commercial role that it still holds today.

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