Page 282 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Spain

280  M ADRID

9 Palacio Real

Madrid’s vast and lavish Royal Palace was built to impress. The
site, on a high bluff over the Río Manzanares, had been occupied
for centuries by a royal fortress, but after a fire in 1734, Felipe V
commissioned a truly palatial replacement. Construc tion lasted
17 years, spanning the reign of two Bourbon monarchs, and
much of the exuberant decor reflects the tastes of Carlos III
and Carlos IV (see p75). The palace was used as a
residence by the royal family until the abdication
of Alfonso XIII in 1931 and is still used today for state
occasions. A new museum of royal collections, being
built next to the palace, is due to open in 2019.

. Dining Room
This gallery was
decorated in
1879. With its
chandeliers, ceiling
paintings and
tapestries, it evokes
the grandeur of
regal Bourbon
entertaining.

. Porcelain Room
The walls and ceiling of
this room, built on the
orders of Carlos III, are
entirely covered in royal
porcelain from the Buen
Retiro factory. Most of the First floor
porcelain is green and
white, and depicts
cherubs and wreaths.
The Hall of
Columns, once used
for royal banquets, is
decorated with
16th-century
bronzes and Roman
imperial busts.

Key to Floorplan . Gasparini Room
Named after its Neapolitan
Exhibition rooms designer, the Gasparini
Entrance rooms Room is decorated with
Carlos III rooms lavish Rococo chinoiserie.
The adjacent antechamber,
Chapel rooms
with painted ceiling and
Carlos IV rooms ornate chandelier, houses
Goya’s portrait of Carlos IV.
For hotels and restaurants in this area see pp568–9 and pp591–3

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