In Santiago Square, between La Casa de la Cultura (civic centre) and the Selva House, is the Town Hall. It was built in the 16th Century in Renaissance style, thanks to the patronage of Pedro de Medina, priest of Santiago church and treasurer of the church of Cartagena.
Initially, the building was conceived as the Abbey House and School of Santiago church, but in 1576 it was acquired by the Town Council to turn it into the Town Hall headquarters, prisons and bread store.
Its construction is attributed to Jacopo Torni, a painter and sculptor from Florence (Italy), who worked in Murcia and Granada as well as in the Santiago church in Villena. After his death in 1526, Jerónimo Quijano continued his work. Among his contributions to the Municipal Palace, it is worth highlighting the portal with two Tritons holding the Villena coat of arms and the windows on the right side of the façade.
Inside there is a cloister with carpal arches on Tuscan columns and the original stairs lead us to the Council Chamber, decorated with tempera wall paintings from the end of the 19th century.
During the siege suffered by Villena in the War of the Spanish Succession, the Palace suffered serious damage that had to be repaired in 1711, under the direction of the architect Cosme Carrera. He is the author of the Baroque window in the façade.
In the middle of the 20th century, the façade was enlarged in its upper area and the patio was restored. The Town Hall of Villena was declared National Historic-Artistic Monument in 1968.
LOCATION
Address: Plaza Santiago, 1
The Town Hall is accessible for people with reduced mobility.
TOURS SCHEDULE
Temporarily closed due to restoration.