La iglesia de la Asunción de Villajoyosa en Alicante, un ejemplo de iglesia fortaleza del Mediterráneo

Abstract

The temple of Our Lady of the Assumption in Villajoyosa is an example of fortress-church on the Mediterranean coast. This is a building with an evident gothic trace whose different masonries show vestiges of roman elements. It stands attached to the defensive walls of La Vila, taking also part of this face the closure of the apse. The bell tower provides access to the sentry path that runs along the roof of the church and from where it can be observed the net of watch-towers around the place. This article describes the church, the evolution of the walls in the city and it is proposed the hypothesis of the pre-existence of part of the first gothic church included in the actual building. This is based on desk studies and on the building geometric recognition via high accuracy techniques that reveal tiny deformations and disagreements, providing clues about the different construction stages of the building.