UCOPress, in collaboration with Alcázar de San Juan Town Council, has published the book El Canal del Gran Priorato de San Juan, obra de Juan de Villanueva. The book offers a historical account that introduces the reader to the construction process of the most significant Enlightenment-era hydraulic infrastructure built in La Mancha, promoted by the Infante of Spain, Don Gabriel de Borbón, and developed from the design and under the direction of one of the most prominent architects in Spanish history, Juan de Villanueva.

Since its construction over two centuries ago, the Canal of the Grand Priory of San Juan has been shrouded in a certain aura of mystery, fuelled by the involvement of remarkable figures, protracted disputes and periods of neglect. The character of its promoters, the conflict over its control and its unusual deterioration are key to understanding the historical significance of this Enlightenment-era canal.

The work focuses on the personalities of its principal promoters, particularly the figure of Infante Don Gabriel de Borbón y Sajonia (1752–1788), son and brother of kings of Spain, a prototype of the Enlightenment patron of the second half of the 18th century, Grand Prior of the Order of the Hospital of St John in the territories of Castile and León, and one of the most unique and least studied members of the Spanish branch of the House of Bourbon. It also pays particular attention to the Neoclassical architect Juan de Villanueva y de Montes (1739–1811), who designed the project and oversaw the construction of the canal, and is regarded as one of the most significant figures in Spanish architecture.

The book focuses on the construction period of the Canal of the Grand Priory of Saint John, as designed by Villanueva. Work began on 14 March 1782 and continued until 3 February 1811, also covering the preceding years during which the project was planned. It has not been the intention, under any circumstances, to provide a complete history of the canalisation up to the present day, nor to analyse in depth the old irrigation channel known as the Citara —the canal’s predecessor— or other hydraulic infrastructure along the Upper Guadiana riverbed.

Links: https://ucopress.uco.es/producto/isbn-9788499279213/ (print format), and https://ucopress.uco.es/producto/isbn-9788499279220/ (digital format).

DOI: https://doi.org/10.21071/000033