In 713 Mérida was conquered by the Muslim army under Musa bin Nusair but it is not until February 28, 1119 that the metropolitan see of the Bishops of Emerita was transferred to Santiago de Compostela by the bull of Pope Calixtus II [REF].
In 1479, Don Alonso de Cárdenas, Master of the Order of Santiago, ordered the extension of the chapel with the intention to make it the main church of the city [REF].