The+Royal+Palace+of+Madrid

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=Video about the Royal Palace of Madrid= Video created by Belen Vidal media type="custom" key="5779751" == =A little introduction= = = The Royal Palace of Madrid is the official residence of the [|King of Spain]. However, King Juan Carlos and the Royal Family do not reside in it. It is used for ceremonies of the State.The palace consists of 50,000 m2, with 870 windows, 240 balconies and 44 stairs. The Ambassadors' Staircase designed by Sabatini, has three parallel ramps 5 meters wide each. The palace is the largest in Western Europe, occupying an area of 135,000 m2. = = = = =History=

The Emir of Córdoba ordered to build a fortress in the IX century to defend him. After the Christian conquest, the Castilian Monarchs reformed and extended preserving the Arab origin of it. They named it The Alcazar. When [|Philip V] was reining, the ancient Alcazar of the Habsburgs was lost in the Eve of 1734 due to a fire. When it was totally destroyed, the king wanted to do a new palace in the same place. The new palace was designed by the architects [|Filippo][|Juvarra] and [|Giovanni Battista Tiepolo], and was builted with stones and bricks without wood, so any fire can't destroy it. For the interior decoration, they used spanish marbles, stuccos, mahogany wood for doors, windows and important works of art, etc.The works were carried out between 1738 and 1755, [|Charles III] established his residence there in 1764. The decoration of the Royal Palace of Madrid has been changing over time according to the different artistic styles of the moment. The reign of Charles III kept the "Salón del Trono" (Throne Room), the "Cámara del Rey" (King's Chamber) and the "Sala de Porcelana" (Porcelain Room), designed by the "Real Fábrica del Buen Retiro" (Royal Factory of Buen Retiro). The reign of Charles IV highlights the "Salón de Espejos" (Hall of Mirrors) and of the time of Alfonso XII, the "Comedor de Gala" (Gala Dining Room).

=Collections=

The Palace has several collections:
 * The Palatine Stradivarius:** Is the most important collection of instruments of the world realized by [|Antonio Stradivari], made up of two violins, a viola and a violoncello, denominated as //Decorated Stradivarius//.
 * Paintings: In t he Palace are the remains of the great royal collection, since most of the paintings became part of the The Prado Museum in the nineteenth century. Still, the painting collection can be considered very important, spanning multiple genres, schools and eras. **
 * Sculpture: At the Royal Palace sculpture series are minor than the collection of paintings, but the series from the XVII century is above exceptional. The main sculptors represented are [|Gian Lorenzo Bernini], [|Mariano Benlliure], [|Antoine Coysevox] and [|Querol]. **
 * Furniture:** Most of the furniture correspond to the time of construction of the palace. They are Rococo, Neoclassical, Empire and Elizabethan.[[image:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3a/RealFarmacia.JPG width="342" height="256" align="right"]]
 * Clocks:** Considered the largest and best collection of clocks of Spain, is also one of the largest in the world. The importance of the collection lies mainly in the Rococo era built for [|Fernando VI] by the Swiss watchmaker [|Jacquet Droz].
 * Porcelains: The porcelain collection includes various eras, styles and backgrounds, but the most valuable are the remains of the china wedding of Charles III and [|Maria Amalia of Saxony] . Stands out for its uniqueness in this section the previously described Saleta Porcelain, fully lined with plates of this material, manufactured by the aforementioned Royal Factory of Buen Retiro. **
 * Tapestry: Considered the largest collection in the world, the tapestry collection primarily consists of panels made in Brussels and the Royal Tapestry Factory cardboards by [|Francisco de Goya] . They highlight the carpets that are covering the walls of the Gala Dining Room. **
 * T[[image:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a4/ArmeriaPalacioRealMadrid.JPG width="254" height="199" align="left"]]he Royal Pharmacy:** During the reign of[| Philip II], the Royal Pharmacy is used to store drugs, a role that continues today. The bottles were made in factories of "[|La Granja] " and of the "[|Buen Retiro] ", there are also other items made in [|Talavera pottery] in the XVII century.
 * The Royal Armory: Considered one of the best in the world, consists of pieces ranging from the fifteenth century onwards. They highlight the parts of the tournament made for [|Charles V] and Philip II by the great masters armorers of Milan and Augsburg. Unfortunately, part of the armory was lost during the[| War of Independence] and during the [|Spanish Civil War] . **

=**Rooms**=
 * The main staircase
 * Gasparini's Room
 * Hall of Columns
 * Throne Room
 * //Saleta// and antechamber of Charles III
 * Chamber and bedroom of Charles III
 * Gala Dining Room
 * Music Room
 * Royal Chapel
 * The imperial ballroom
 * The imperial bedchamber
 * 252 royal guest bedchambers
 * The blue porcelain room
 * The green porcelain room
 * Mirrors Room
 * Royal Library
 * The red reception room

=Nowadays=

Now, the Palace is a touristic place and it can be visited. In the north of the Palace, there are the [|Sabatini Gardens]. In the west side there is the Campo del Moro. In the est side there is the Plaza de Oriente and the [|Teatro Real]. And in the south side there is a big square called Plaza de Armas and the [|Almudena Cathedral].

For view this page in spanish, click here. Sources: [|Wikipedia] (translated) and [|Patrimonio Nacional]