7: Miraz - Sobrado
Stage 21 Km
Sobrado dos Monxes
The route passes along small villages, leaves Friol and the province of Lugo and enters A Coruña.
It goes next to a pool which was the fish farm of the monks of Sobrado a time ago.
The Monastery of Sobrado dos Monxes was founded in 952, closed in 1006 and revived in 1142 during the reign of Alfonso VI as the first monastery of the Cistercian Order in Spain.
The present building (Baroque, 17th century) houses St John Chapel, the chapter house and the kitchen of the monastery dating from the 13th century.
The rectangular and two floor processional cloister was built in the 16th century. The Renaissance vestry in the South wing of the transept dates from the same century as well.
The Pilgrim’s Cloister, so called because of the dedication of the monks to attend pilgrims on their way to Compostela, was built in the 17th century. After being abandoned during the sale of the Church lands, it was restored and inhabited again in the middle of the 20th century. Nowadays, the monastery keeps a very important religious and social activity, mainly the attention to pilgrims to Compostela.