The historic Ancient Spanish Monastery is one of Miami’s hidden gems. Located at 16711 West Dixie Highway, this monument is a beautiful representation of classic Spanish architecture. Originally called ‘The Monastery of Our Lady, Queen of the Angels,’ this beauty was constructed in the year 1133 AD in Sacramenia, which is near Segovia in the northern part of Spain. Later in 1141, eight years later, the Monastery was completed and dedicated to the Blessed Mother. However, in 1174, the Monastery was renamed ‘The Monastery of St. Bernard de Clairvaux,’ in honor of his canonization (i.e. recognition by the church as a saint upon his passing). Bernard was a Cistercian monk and mystic, as well as the founder and abbot of the Abbey of Clairvaux, thus making him one of the most influential church leaders of his time.
After having occupied the Monastery for around 700 years, the Cistercian monks experienced a downfall via an 1830s social revolution. Thusly, the Monastery’s Cloisters were captured, sold, and converted into a granary and stable. Nevertheless, in 1925 William Randolph Hearst restored honor to the beautiful establishment, with the purchase of the Cloisters and the Monastery’s outbuildings. The Monastery was so valued that Hearst took numerous steps to ensure that the shipping of the structure, to the US, was handled with great care. Each structure was dismantled piece by piece, wrapped in protective hay, and packed in more than 11,000 wooden crates, each numbered for identification. Unfortunately, Hearst’s financial problems caused the shipment to remain in a warehouse in Brooklyn, NY for 26 years. After Hearst’s death in 1952, two entrepreneurs purchased the shipment to use as a tourist attraction. 19 months and $20 million dollars later the Monastery’s construction in North Miami Beach was completed.
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