Leon, an inland town is located on a fertile plateau. Its cool climate makes it the vegetable basket of Iloilo, supplying even neighboring Negros with salad vegetables. Called Camando in ancient times it became a visita of Tigbauan in 1730 and in 1738 became an independent parish, under the advocacy of Sta. Catalina, virgin and martyr, with Fr. Andrés Solar as first parish priest. Several attempts were made to transfer the townsite. In 1773, an attempt to transfer the townsite met with opposition from the townspeople. But in 1863, Fr. Agustín Ma. Castro, assigned parish priest beginning 1859, transferred the town three kilometers from its previous site. He was also authorized to rename the town Leon, the capital city of his hometown. The first church was built at Camando. Fr. Melquiades Arizmendi, assigned at Leon from 1869-76, started a church of hewn stone. An 1882 document stated that the church remained unfinished, despite work done by Fr. Victoriano Garcia in 1879 and Fr. Manuel Gutierrez in 1885. The church was never completed. The convento was begun in 1871 by Fr. Sergio Rodriguez and completed in 1885 by Fr. Andrés Naves. The church was seriously damaged by war, and left in ruins.

Heritage Features: Even in its ruinous and unfinished state, the church is a compelling structure. Closer to the Renaissance idiom, the façade is divided into five bays by pillars. Planned as a large triple-nave church, the portals to the nave are planned as tall and graceful arches. Occuli pierce the upper register of the lateral bays while arches and a niche decorate the central portion. The steep triangular pediment, disproportionately small for the façade harmonizes nonetheless with the whole composition. The apse has stone retablos and fragments of statuary in stone. The church was reported to have 12 santos transferred from the earlier church in Camando and carved around 1786. None of this statuary remains.

Iloilo City | Iloilo Suburbs

Pavia | Sta. Barbara | Cabatuan | LEON | Janiuay | Lapaz

Iloilo's Southern Coast