The Juries of València -registered and organic government institution created by King Jaume I in 1245 with the aim of administering, governing and ruling the city of València- compiled the studies dependent on the city and the church at the beginning of the 15th century, but they were separated again in 1416.This wish of the Juries to unify the higher studies of València in one place only would come true decades after. In 1498, Pere Compte, architect of well-known Valencian works such as Palau de la Generalitat (local government building) or La Lonja (the silk exchange) was appointed to adapt the buildings where the General Study is located nowadays, at Carrer de la Nave.

On 30th April 1499, the "Constitutions" were published, drawn up after a request by the Council of València. They are considered the founding document of the Universitat, this being the reason why, from October 1999 to July 2000, the commemorative events of the 5th centenary of this institution took place.

The bull of Pope Alexander IV in 1501, together with the royal privilege of Ferran II a year after, led to the official opening -on 13th October 1502- of the General Study of València, thus reaching the university status and equivalence to the universities of Rome, Bologna, Salamanca and Lleida, as stated in different prerogatives and distinctions.For centuries, the studies developed peacefully and, at some stages, they reached great splendour. The classrooms became a place of wisdom, where people of high stature learnt and taught: the philosopher Joan Lluís Vives, the humanists Simón de Rojas Clemente y Rubio and Honorat Joan i Escrivà, the naturalist Josep Antoni Cavanilles, the scientist Joan Baptista Coratjà, the mathematician Vicent Tomàs Tosca, or the erudite Gregori Maians and Francesc Pérez Bayer.

The university building underwent an importantdestruction during the bombing of the city in 1808 by Napoleon's troops led by Suchet. The library was destroyed and only the assembly hall and the chapel survived. The restoration during the 19th century was slow and difficult. Together with the library, renewed with the collections which came from the expropriated convents, an interesting Museum of Natural Science was created in 1836, but was destroyed by the flames in 1932. The economic and institutional autonomy which Universitat enjoyed since its foundation was taken away in 1844, and the General Studies then became dependent on the state, their professors becoming civil servants.

In time, the different studies started to leave their historic Universitat venue and moved to the Blasco Ibáñez campus.

The Mare de Déu de la Sapiència chapel, also built by Pere Compte in 1498, was completely reconstructed in 1736 in a very classicist Baroque style. The Juries arranged to have a mural painting done for the chapel, with the image of the Mare de Déu de la Sapiència Virgin, which was made in 1517 by the artist Nicolau Falcó and the sculptor Lluís Muñoz. Only the central panel of the mural painting is kept, and today, it still presides over the chapel; in 1780 some paintings were added to it on the sides. All of the chapel has been refurbished recently (1985-90), and its opening in 1990 permitted the celebration of cultural acts, such as concerts, recitals etc., as well as religious ceremonies. In October 1999, the global refurbishment of the building was completed thus ensuring the continuation of academic, scientific, and artistic life.