The former church and convent of Saint Bartholomew

The former church and convent of Sant Bartomeu were part of an important religious complex located in the les Escodines neighborhood. Although it originally consisted only of a church built during the 13th century, from 1582 the Capuchin friars of Manresa established their community there. During the 17th century, the convent was constructed and expanded, and the church was renovated in the Baroque style of the time.

The process of expanding and embellishing the religious complex coincided with the creation of the future sanctuary of the Cave of Saint Ignatius by the Society of Jesus on the adjacent land. The close proximity of the two orders eventually led to significant friction between the communities. The most important conflict arose from the Capuchins’ claim that the true “cave” of Saint Ignatius was located on their sanctuary grounds, not those of the Jesuits.

Like many other convents in Manresa, the Sant Bartomeu convent became publicly owned in 1835 due to Mendizábal’s disentailment. In the following years, the complex served as a charitable house, military barracks, refugee shelter, and finally, a prison. Today, its facilities have been adapted to house the social center of the les Escodines neighborhood association. The convent church passed into the hands of the Germanetes dels Pobres in 1863. It was completely destroyed in the summer of 1936, during the first months of the Spanish Civil War.