The Royal Palace (El Palacio Real)

The Royal Palace of Madrid (Palacio Real de Madrid or Palacio de Oriente) is the official residence of the King of Spain. However His Majesty King Juan Carlos I does not actually reside there but in the smaller Palacio de la Zarzuela, on the outskirts of Madrid. The last of the monarchs to use the building as a regular home was Alfonso XIII and his wife Victoria Eugenia. The Palacio Real is still used for state occasions.

The palace is the largest royal palace in Western Europe with over a combined area of over 135,000 m² and more than 2,800 rooms.

The site of the palace dates from a 10th-century fortress, called Mayrit or Magerit, constructed as an outpost by Mohammed I, Emir of Córdoba. After Madrid fell to Alfonso VI, king of Castile and Leon, in 1085, the fortress was only rarely used by the kings. In 1329, King Alfonso XI called the Cortes in Madrid for the first time.

Carlos I (Emperor Carlos V) and his son, Felipe II, turned the building into a permanent home for the Spanish royal family. The Antiguo Alcázar ("Old Castle") burned on Christmas Eve, 1734; King Felipe V ordered a new palace built on the same location. The entire complex was built with stone and brick vaulting, without any wood, so that no future fire could destroy it.

Construction spanned the years 1738 to 1755 and followed a Berniniesque design by Filippo Juvarra and Giovanni Battista Tiepolo in cooperation with Ventura Rodríguez, Francesco Sabatini, and Scirmento. The new palace was occupied by Carlos III in 1764. His successors, Carlos IV (responsible for the creation of the Hall of Mirrors) and Fernando VII, added many decorative details and furnishings, such as clocks, items of furniture and chandeliers.

The palace is richly decorated by artists such as Velázquez, Tiepolo, Mengs, Gasparini, Juan de Flandes, Caravaggio or Goya among others.

The Royal Armoury is kept in the palace with weapons dating back to the 13th century. It also keeps the world's only complete Stradivarius string quintet, as well as collections of tapestry, porcelain, furniture, and other objets d'art of great historical importance.

Below the palace, to the west, are the gardens of the Campo del Moro. To the east is the Plaza de Oriente and the Teatro Real (the operahouse of Madrid). To the south is a vast square, the Plaza de la Armas, surrounded by narrow wings of the palace, and further the Catedral de la Almudena. To the north are the Jardines de Sabatini (Sabatini Gardens).


The palace is open to the public and it is closed when used for state functions.

Transportation: Ópera metro station.

picture wikipedia.org