Plaza de las Agustinas

In 1626, a terrible flood of the Tormes river, known as the Riada de San Policarpo, devastated a large part of the city, destroying numerous buildings. One of the most affected structures was the Convento de las Madres Agustinas Recoletas, then located on the banks of the river. Ten years later, in 1636, the Count of Monterrey, Manuel de Zúñiga y Fonseca, ordered a new convent to be built to house his daughter Inés Francisca de la Visitación, who belonged to this Order.

This building was constructed opposite the Monterrey Palace, the patron's residence. The Church of La Purísima, the public part of the convent, was conceived by the count as a funerary chapel for himself and his family. Construction was completed in 1687.
With a Latin cross plan, a single nave, and side chapels, the church's construction began following designs by Bartolomeo Picchiatti, while the five altarpieces, the pulpit, the tombs, and the entrance doors were designed by Cosimo Fanzago (1593-1678), giving the building a distinctive Italian character. The church's facade features a striking portico, 33 meters long and with three distinct sections. Inside, the Main Altarpiece in marble stands out, featuring an important painting of the Immaculate Conception, a work by José de Ribera.

The Monterrey Palace is one of the finest examples of the Plateresque artistic style. Built by the 3rd Count of Monterrey, it is currently owned by the House of Alba, which holds the title of said earldom. It was a highly admired and imitated building in the 19th century, giving rise to the so-called Monterrey or Neo-Plateresque style, a historicist movement that revived Plateresque aesthetics. Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón and Fray Martín de Santiago sketched the palace's plans, and Pedro de Ibarra and Pedro de Miguel y Aguirre began construction on January 18, 1539. The project envisioned a quadrangular, three-story building with a central courtyard, towers at each corner, and in the center of each wing. However, only one of the wings, the southern one, was ultimately built. It was declared a National Historic Monument, equivalent to the current term BIC (Asset of Cultural Interest) with the category of Monument, on May 6, 1929.