VI JORNADAS ARTE Y CIUDAD (III Encuentros Internacionales) Madrid, 1, 2 y 3 de Abril de 2014 Facultad de Ciencias de la Información Universidad Complutense de Madrid

In the conquest of Valencia in 1238 and its subsequent Christianization we find the genesis of the convent city. Over the centuries the dominant presence of convents and monasteries determined various aspects of the city, urban development being one of them. However, the influence and power that these monasteries exercised diminished gradually with the reduction in the number of their members and foundations. The point of no return comes with the nineteenth century when the successive confiscations and the consolidation of the bourgeoisie mean its fading. This study aims to make an approach to the role that the destruction of convents and monasteries played in the urban development and progress of Valencia towards a capitalist city profile. For that purpose, we pretend to study the processes of secularization, specially undertaken by the minister Mendizábal, the beneficiaries of these transactions, as well as the different destinations assigned to the disposed assets and their role in the urban configuration of modern Valencia.