OLD CHURCH OF THE MOST HOLY TRINITY OF THE ARRABAL

The Church of the Holy Trinity is located in the Arrabal del Puente, alongside the Vía de la Plata. It served as the parish church for the “beyond the bridge” suburb since medieval times. Its origin is uncertain, though it is placed between the late 12th and early 13th centuries. The first documentary reference to the church appears in a donation dated 1262. Over time, the temple was occupied by Trinitarian friars, and also served as a refuge for Dominicans and walled-in women.

Little to nothing remains of its medieval origins as it was extensively rebuilt in the late 15th or early 16th century. The current building, with a single nave and a robust bell tower at the chancel, is the only vestige that has survived from the historical constructions existing in the old Arrabal neighborhood.

The suburb was repeatedly punished by the violent floods of the Tormes river. On the night of January 26, 1626, Salamanca witnessed the most devastating flood in its history, known as the Riada de San Policarpo (Flood of Saint Polycarp). The waters of the Tormes swept away both banks, taking with them a large part of the architectural heritage that stood upon them. Among the vanished constructions on the left bank of the river were the San Lázaro Leper Hospital; the hermitage and hospital of Santa María de Rocamador (Rocamadour), which offered refuge to pilgrims on their way to Santiago, and the cemetery of the Hebrew community. Some of these buildings can be seen in the famous drawing of Salamanca made from the Teso de la Feria by the Flemish Anton Van den Wyngaerde in 1570.

Amidst the destruction, one of the few constructions that managed to survive was the Church of the Holy Trinity. After the disappearance of the San Lázaro Hospital and the Rocamador hermitage, this church took on the role of housing and assisting Jacobean pilgrims. However, the church was severely damaged and the neighborhood lost part of its population, so it was incorporated into the San Julián parish. Nevertheless, at the end of the 19th century, thanks to the parochial reform promoted by Father Cámara, it regained its status as an independent parish.

In the mid-20th century, it was closed for worship, being replaced by the New Church of the Arrabal. Half a century later, structural problems with the new church led to its desacralization, with worship returning to the old Arrabal church, which, after years of abandonment, was restored in 2006. Currently, the Church of the Holy Trinity depends on the parish of San Pedro Apóstol de Tejares.

In the vicinity, there are numerous points of interest, including:
• New Church of the Arrabal (Most Holy Trinity)
• Roman Bridge
• Roman Bridge Viewpoint
• Embarcadero Viewpoint
• Enrique Estevan Bridge
• Numerous green areas

Of medieval origin, the Church of the Trinity today presents an appearance marked by the profound reforms undertaken in the late 15th or early 16th century. Its plan is rectangular, with three naves and a straight chancel. The gable roof is supported by an old wooden truss, recently restored. The building is constructed with Villamayor stone masonry, using well-squared ashlar stones at the corners and in the door and window frames. On its walls, a bricked-up semicircular arch doorway and reused stones with marks and incisions, testaments to its long history, can be observed.

The temple's only current door opens on the south wall, framed by a semicircular arch above which three medallions are arranged, highlighting the central one with a Trinitarian cross. Attached to the chancel of the Epistle nave stands the bell tower, where a Renaissance relief depicting a Trinitarian friar—probably Saint John of Matha—kneeling before the Virgin stands out. Above both is an inverted shell, arranged as a canopy.

The interior is organized into three naves separated by two large depressed arches. The temple once had a wooden gallery at the foot, now disappeared. The central nave, with a straight chancel, lacks an altarpiece. Its only ornamentation is an image of a crucified Christ placed high on the wall. It is an anonymous work from the 17th century known as the Cristo del Amor y de la Paz, patron of the eponymous brotherhood.

The chancel of the Gospel nave houses a splendid Plateresque altarpiece made of Villamayor sandstone. Its delicate decoration includes cherubs, griffins, and candlesticks. The tabernacle is located on its altar table. The two altar tables preserved in the temple display Trinitarian crosses inscribed in circles on their fronts.

On the north wall, a modern niche houses the image of María, nuestra madre, a life-size dressing Madonna, made in 1987 by Hipólito Pérez Calvo for the Brotherhood of Christ of Love and Peace. Finally, in an arcosolium of the southern nave, is the image of Nuestra Señora de la Encarnación. During the restoration of the temple, mural paintings that had been hidden under layers of lime were discovered in this arcosolium.