Being the Duke very fond of horses, it is not surprising that he was invited to visit the royal stables, where he went with his entourage as he left the Cathedral. Certainly disdainful is the judgment of those knights about the Bishop Palace and the Fortress, then Palace and Prison of the Inquisition, which were labeled by Magalotti in his chronicle as “most vulgar buildings.” But we must be understanding about the level of aesthetic demand of those people whose taste had been formed in contact with the works of Brunelleschi, Michelozzo, Miguel Angel and Vasari.

They also crossed through the Campo Santo de los Mártires, and got interest in the tradition that situates in this place the martyrdom of several Cordovan saints. In addition to the monument dedicated by Ambrosio de Morales to the memory of Saint Eulogio, they saw several marble crosses, which replaced since 1634 the old wooden ones. About these latter, it is said by the legend that, one night, they had descended from heaven. The truth is that in 1633 they were destroyed by the crowd that came, during Easter, to hear a sung Miserere, being later replaced by stone crosses which were offered by many devout people.

          

At the door of the stables the Duke was received by the first horseman, Don Fernando de Narvaez and Saavedra, a distinguished nobleman from Cordoba who had occupied a position among the Twenty-four Knights. Another knight, Don Antonio de Ojeda, went also to prostrate himself before His Highness. He mounted three horses in front of the Duke, without wearing the short coat named “ferreruelo”, what, Magalotti informs us, was the distinction done when riding before members of the royalty. For its part, the Corsini chronicle refers with enthusiasm to the many horses mounted by the stableman and his boys, whose skill in maneuvering caused admiration among the Italians.

           

 

Visit to the Royal Stables

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