The Convento de Cabeza de Alba monastery in León

The Convento de Cabeza de Alba is located in Horta, midway between Corullón and Toral de los Vados in the province of León. The site features a hermitaged chapel built in 1423 by Diego García and Fernando Pérez, who lived there as penitents. In 1444, Pedro Álvarez Osorio obtained a papal bull to restore the structure, which had been in a state of ruins since 1441.

The monastery functioned as a house of Observance and later as a house of Recolección, becoming a place of spiritual retreat for monks from across the northwest. It was a site where the clérigo Antonio José Ruiz de Padrón, a politician from La Gomera, was held in perpetual retreat from late 1814 until 1816. Ruiz de Padrón had been a primary driver for the abolition of the Voto de Santiago and the Inquisition, which led to his processing and eventual sentencing to the convent.

By the mid-18th century, the convent housed 25 monks. Following the desamortización in 1834, the Franciscans were forced to abandon the site. Since 1848, the property has been private and used for farming work on more than 30 hectares of land. Today, only the remains of the walls, arches, and the main house with the square tower can be seen.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons