San Pedro de Rocas

The origins of San Pedro de Rocas date back to before 573, the year in which, according to an inscription on a tombstone in the monastery church, five inhabitants of the monastery received some kind of inheritance. It is linked to the missionary Martín de Braga in the Suebian period. At the beginning of the 8th century, the place was abandoned due to Muslim attacks. In a document from 1007 is reported that in the 9th century a knight found the ruins while hunting and lived there with his companions as religious. It is assumed that this story is a legend, though monastic life was refounded.

Alfonso III of Asturias introduced the Benedictine rule and provided the monastery at that time with large donations.

In the 11th century, a fire destroyed a large part of the monastery, but it got rebuilt. Another fire destroyed the monastery complex in 1640 and the subsequent reconstruction gave the monastery its current appearance. After the confiscation of the church property in 1836, the church became a parish church, which had to be closed at the beginning of the 20th century due to the numerous landslides.

The church, which dates back to the 12th century , has three naves dug into the rock. The naves are actually two chapels separated by arches into the rock. The central nave is wider and longer than the side ones. There are five tombs on its floor. There is a vent in the ceiling through which light and air enter, as if it were a false dome with a lantern. The ceiling of all the chapels simulates a barrel vault.