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Francisco de Cubas y González-Montes (13 April 1826 – 2 January 1899) was a Spanish architect and politician. He was also known as the Marquis of Cubas (Marqués de Cubas) after his noble title, the marquisate of Cubas. He was also from 1894 the Marquis of Fontalba.
He studied at the Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura in
Francisco de Cubas y González-Montes (13 April 1826 – 2 January 1899) was a Spanish architect and politician. He was also known as the Marquis of Cubas (Marqués de Cubas) after his noble title, the marquisate of Cubas. He was also from 1894 the Marquis of Fontalba.
He studied at the Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura in Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
and obtained scholarships that allowed him to complete his studies in Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
and Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
. Upon his return to Spain in 1858, he won a medal at the National Exposition of 1858. A member of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando from 1870, he worked as an architect while also pursuing a political career as a member of the Cortes Generales
The Cortes Generales (; en, Spanish Parliament, lit=General Courts) are the bicameral legislative chambers of Spain, consisting of the Congress of Deputies (the lower house), and the Senate (the upper house).
The Congress of Deputies meet ...
(as a deputy or diputado), en 1893, as the senator representing Ávila between 1896–98, and, he served as mayor of Madrid
The Mayor of Madrid presides over the Madrid City Council, the government body of the capital city of Spain. The mayor has the duty of boosting the local policies, it directs the action of the other executive bodies, leads the Local Executive Admi ...
for a month (November 6, 1892 – December 1, 1892).
His work represents some of the most well-known of 19th century architecture of Madrid, and his style is noted for its use of brick and his works in the Neo-Gothic
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
and Historicist
Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying their history, that is, by studying the process by which they came about. The term is widely u ...
styles. His work includes the Jesuit college known as the Colegio Nuestra Señora del Recuerdo, the University of Deusto
The University of Deusto ( es, Universidad de Deusto; eu, Deustuko Unibertsitatea) is a Spanish private university owned by the Society of Jesus, with campuses in Bilbao and San Sebastián, and the Deusto Business School branch in Madrid. The Un ...
in Bilbao
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, and the National Museum of Anthropology in Madrid. It also includes the Palace of Arenzana (today the French embassy) in Madrid and the Church of Santa Cruz in Madrid.
His most famous work is Almudena Cathedral, begun in 1883. The original plan had been to create a parochial church. Francisco de Cubas revised this plan, deciding instead to create an imposing Neo-Gothic cathedral, the style popular at that time, especially due to the influence of Viollet-le-Duc. This project was later modified significantly: work on the cathedral encountered delays due to economic difficulties, and later the style was modified to a Neoclassic style, in line with the nearby Palacio de Oriente (Palacio Real). More representative of Francisco de Cubas’ vision is the Castle of Butrón in Gatica, in the Basque Country.
He married the noblewoman Matilde de Erice y Urquijo in 1860. They are both buried in a chapel of the crypt of the Cathedral of Almudena.
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