Iglesia Parroquial de San Antonio de Padua - Cádiz - Andalusia

This church has its origins in a chapel that stood on the same site , which was then called Campo de la Jara. The current building was inaugurated in 1669.

The facade leading to the The square of the same name is very attractive because of the high towers that frame it. It is centered by an interesting Baroque facade carved in sandstone around 1730 and divided into two parts, supported by Corinthian columns in the first part and Solomonic columns in the second. Above the entrance is a marble statue of Saint Anthony. An abundant decoration complements the structure, which is an original work in the Baroque style of Cádiz.

The main altarpiece , made of polychrome wood imitating marble, is a 19th-century academic-style work by Manuel García del Álamo. The main statue is that of the Virgen del Patrocinio and on the sides San Antonio and San Francisco de Paula, polychrome sculptures dating to the production of Pedro Roldán .

Inside there is also the altarpiece of the Brotherhood of the Christ of the Column, a remarkable polychrome wooden sculpture signed by Jacinto Pimentel in 1660, whose column is a Mexican silverware, made in the second half of the 17th century.

In 1971 , the church called on the parishioners of the old parish church of San Antonio to give their opinion about the future of the temple, which was closed to worship and was clearly on the verge of collapse . The church was structurally badly built . The demolition of the Church of San Antonio was agreed in a public ceremony by the parishioners of the parish. It was decided by majority vote to demolish the church and to sell the 460 square meters of land , with which the future church could be paid.

The new design was very modern : it described the functions that the new parish should offer: a main building dedicated to worship and other secondary ones, which include administrative services, parish halls and rooms for the penitents and housing for priests.

A popular opposition protested , pointing to the "barbarity" of tearing down San Antonio and replacing it with a building unrelated to the old town.

In the end, and fortunately, the Royal Academy of History joined the controversy by calling the project an "thorn in the side" .

Willem Vandenameele