"Et occidetur virtute Domini Antichristus a Mikaele arcangelo". Landscape and eschatology in Sant Miquel de Llíria (14th century A.D.)

Abstract

We try to determinate in this article the reasons for which the shrine of Sant Miquel de Llíria, one of the most important of the current province of Valencia, was consecrated to the war-like archangel. To achieve this goal, we study the history of St. Michaelʼs worship in west Europe, emphasizing aspects as his relation with high places and the frequent proximity of his shrines with those dedicated to the Virgin. We will attend also to fundamental aspects of the historical context, as the medieval movements of spiritual renovation, the Arnau de Vilanova’s significance in Valencia at the beginning of XIV century and the eschatological prophecies linked to the arrival of the Antichrist.