My first day in Spain

Palacio Real de Madrid (The Royal Palace of Madrid)
picture by Marsha J. P. Gonzales

Hi, everyone, today was a very fast-paced day. We visited the Palacio Real de Madrid. This palace is huge! It is a complete rectangle. The picture above is only one segment of one side. It houses several royal collections of great historical value. It is the official residence of the King of Spain. The King does not live in the palace. He uses the palace for official ceremonies and entertaining.

The palace dates back to the 9th century. The Islamic Kingdom of Toledo built it as a fortress, which was later used by the Kings of Castile. In the 16th century the Old Alcazar was constructed. It was later destroyed by fire on Christmas Eve, 1734.

Picture by Marsha J. P. Gonzales
The new palace was constructed by order of King Philip V. From 1738 to 1755 the entire complex was built out of stone and brick. No wood was use so it would never be destroyed by fire again. King Charles III lived in the palace in 1764.



picture by Marsha J. P. Gonzales

Within the palacio´s walls we were able to view only 20 rooms. One room was called Salon De Columnas. Within the wall were mounted 12 large mirrors trimmed with gold and two angels on the upper top and one in the middle. The ceiling was covered with fresco paintings.

I saw the King’s Throne Room!

Web picture

The ceiling was covered with an unbelievable fresco that stretched the total length and width of the ceiling. Depicted in the fresco is the Allegory of the Spanish Monarchy. This fresco was painted by Tiepolo and completed in 1766. Twelve huge golden mirrors lined the walls. They are from the Royal Factory of La Granja. Under each mirror was a large golden wall table. The floor was covered with a gorgeous red, green, and gold patterned carpet. Hanging from the ceiling were two huge rock-crystal chandeliers that illumined the room. The chandeliers were purchased by Venice in 1780. In the center of the room to the left are the two stunning golden thrones. Leading to the throne are four side to side long steps covered with red carpet. Four large bronze lions sit on the two sides of the platform in front of the thorn. The lions are resting their paws on large golden globes, as to protect the king and queen. These lions represent power. They were brought from Rome in 1650 by Velazquez. In this majestic room, the king’s subjects are allowed to see the king.

Interesting fact:

The city of Madrid is in a triangular shape. From kilometre 0 in the La Puerta del sol all ends met.