Cartuja Baja

Located on the outskirts of the city of Zaragoza and now the heart of the rural district known as Cartuja Baja, the Monastery of the Immaculate Conception owes its existence to Don Alonso de Funes y Villalpando (d. 1630), a nobleman from Zaragoza, Councilor of the Hospital of San Felipe and Santiago, and Deputy of the Kingdom. He conceived the idea of founding a new Carthusian monastery in Aragonese lands, stipulating in his last will and testament that upon his wife's death, his entire estate should pass to the Carthusian monks so they could build a monastery dedicated to the Immaculate Conception. However, while the idea originated with Don Alonso, the true driving force and executor of the project was his temperamental wife, the wealthy heiress Doña Jerónima Zaporta, granddaughter of the famous banker Gabriel Zaporta. Upon her husband's death in 1630, she felt a responsibility... to fulfill his wishes, a resolution that led him not only to directly guide this important undertaking, but also to pledge the bequest of his own personal fortune. The drafting of the Capitulation and Concord of the Foundation of La Cartuja took place on August 20, 1634. For a time, the Foundation was located in a place near the town of Alcañiz called Torre de los Martucos or Torre de la Fuente de los Martucos, but finally, in 1643, the monks settled in the so-called Torre de las Vacas or Torre de Martín Cabrero, near Zaragoza, a place that would become the definitive location of the monastery. The truth is that La Cartuja de la Inmaculada Concepción was a foundation with sound finances. In addition to the income bequeathed by its founders, over the years, and especially during the 18th century, the monastery acquired new assets and properties thanks to alms and donations, the commissioning of masses, the work of the monks, and the profits derived from its income. It grew into a wealthy Carthusian monastery with a large number of rural and urban properties (some of which were leased). Thanks to the financial resources available to the community, a very large monastery (with 37 cells) was built. Construction began in 1651 (the date of the laying of the foundation stone), its essential parts were completed in 1767, and it was improved over time. Unfortunately, the confiscation laws and decrees enacted by the Spanish government in the first half of the 19th century brought an end to the monastic life of this Carthusian monastery. The monastery passed into private hands, where it was inhabited and transformed, giving rise to the rural neighborhood of Zaragoza known as Cartuja Baja. Declared a Site of Cultural Interest, several of its buildings still stand and are being restored according to the Special Plan for the protection and interior renovation of the historical and artistic complex of the Charterhouse of the Conception.