This building encapsulates the selflessness and piety of Ms Beatriz Pacheco, the widow of Rodrigo Ponce de León, the Third Count of Arcos, and fabled captain serving their majesties Queen Isabel of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon during the War of Granada. Beatriz, in her keenness to aid the neediest, under-took the construction of the Santa Misericordia Hospital, also known as the Casa de los Expósitos, in 1490. This place was intended to provide both care for sick women as well as shelter and protection for or-phaned or abandoned children. Thus, this noble institution has become a beacon of hope for those who, due to diverse circumstances, have been removed from the warmth and protection of the family home-stead.

To avoid the youngest infants being left at the mercy of the harsh climate, as it was customary to leave children at the building’s doorway, awaiting a kind soul from the institution who might see them and take them in, Beatriz ordered the construction of a hatch next to the main entrance. This unique structure, taking on the shape of a turning wheel, enabled the children to be left inside the shelter anonymously and without the risk of being seen, thereby providing a safe place in which their safekeeping and wellbe-ing could be ensured.

It was commonplace that the parents, either due to poverty, sickness or even due to the burden of shame, could not or did not wish to take care of their offspring, from time to time these were also born out of wedlock. The hatch provided the mother or caregiver with the chance to leave the child in a safe place, without having to bear the stigma of being outed publicly. Once the hatch turned, the child re-mained inside the home with the identity of the person leaving them remaining hidden.

Fortunately, the founding of the Santa Misericordia Hospital offered a solution to these wretched souls. The children were welcomed into the community which provided them with shelter and the chance to forge a new life within a safe setting filled with hope. In my role as doctor in this town, I frequently visit the small children housed in this noble place, to check on their health and give them whatever care they need for their growth and development.

From the walls that took in nameless lives, let us journey now toward the former watchtower where the stone of war seems to make the altar and temple turn.