Orihuela Cathedral Orihuela Cathedral Orihuela Cathedral ("Catedral de Orihuela") is the main Roman Catholic church of Orihuela, Valencian Community, southern Spain. It was built above a pre-existing Muslim mosque as a simple parish church, and was later converted into main church by order of King Alfonso X of Castile in 1281. In 1413, pope Benedict XIII elevated it to the rank of collegiate, until it become a cathedral in 1510. Construction was begun in the late 13th century in Valencian Gothic style, with a Latin cross plan including a nave and two aisles, an ambulatory and chapels within buttresses. The crossing, the
Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba Alfonso X oversaw the construction of the Villaviciosa Chapel and the Royal Chapel within the mosque. The kings who followed added further Christian features, such as King Henry II rebuilding the chapel in the 14th century. The minaret of the mosque was also converted to the bell tower of the cathedral. It was adorned with Santiago de Compostela's captured cathedral bells. The most significant alteration was the building of a Renaissance cathedral nave in the middle of the expansive structure. The insertion was constructed by permission of Charles V, king of Castile and Aragon. However, when Charles V visited the