Cuenca Cathedral is a Gothic cathedral in the city of Cuenca in Cuenca Province in the Castile-La Mancha region of south-eastern central Spain. Expression of Norman Gothic of northern Europe, begun in 1196.The wife of King Alfonso VIII, Eleanor Plantagenet of England, daughter of King Henry II Plantagenet of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine, Duchess of Aquitaine, Sister of Richard the Lionheart, who inspired this cathedral. The influence of the Norman court of King Alfonso VIII, defined the construction of this cathedral, the first Gothic cathedral of Castile, together with that of Avila. Work began in the year 1196 and was completed in 1257.