Justo Martinez, commonly known as Don Justo, was forced to leave an order of the monks due to his illness. Once his health improved, Don Justo vowed to build a church on his land, with his own money.
The cathedral is now 131 feet tall. The entire structure has been erected using the local materials. The design of the temple is roughly the same as that of the St. Peter’s Cathedral.
Don Justo was a farmer by profession, yet it didn’t stop him from taking on this massive project.
Undeterred by the absence of a formal plan or drawings, Don Justo continued to work on his masterpiece. The design of the cathedral borrows patterns and motifs from castles, churches, and even the White House.
Most of the bricks used in the construction of the cathedral came from brick factories in the surrounding.
The cathedral covers 8,000 square meters. The roof of the church is an unusual combination of salvaged bricks and tiles while the paint buckets shoot from the towers.
The rest of the construction was built using the donated materials. His nephews and an assistant also pitch in the construction of the project.
In spite, the absence of permits and plans, the City of Madrid has not questioned its existence. Martinez has now approached an architect to apply officially for a permit to avoid any complications in using the building as a house of worship.
See more images of the cathedral below:
