Madrid Cityscape
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Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...
. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a
metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually ...
population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
(EU), and its
monocentric The monocentric chromosome is a chromosome that has only one centromere in a chromosome and forms a narrow constriction. Monocentric centromeres are the most common structure on highly repetitive DNA in plants and animals. Structure Monocen ...
metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually ...
is the third-largest in the EU.United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affair
World Urbanization Prospects (2007 revision)
, (United Nations, 2008), Table A.12. Data for 2007.
The municipality covers geographical area. Madrid lies on the
River Manzanares The Manzanares () is a river in the centre of the Iberian Peninsula, which flows from the Sierra de Guadarrama, passes through Madrid, and eventually empties into the Jarama river, which in turn is a right-bank tributary to the Tagus. In ...
in the central part of the
Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, def ...
. Capital city of both Spain (almost without interruption since 1561) and the surrounding autonomous community of Madrid (since 1983), it is also the political, economic and cultural centre of the country. The city is situated on an elevated plain about from the closest seaside location. The
climate of Madrid Madrid and its metropolitan area has a Mediterranean climate ( Köppen climate classification: ''Csa'') which transitions to a cold semi-arid climate (''BSk''). According to the Troll-Paffen climate classification, Madrid has ''warm-temperate subt ...
features hot summers and cool winters. The Madrid urban agglomeration has the second-largest GDP in the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
and its influence in
politics Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...
,
education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...
,
entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousa ...
,
environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...
,
media Media may refer to: Communication * Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass e ...
,
fashion Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fash ...
,
science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence ...
,
culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...
, and the
arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...
all contribute to its status as one of the world's major global cities. Due to its economic output, high
standard of living Standard of living is the level of income, comforts and services available, generally applied to a society or location, rather than to an individual. Standard of living is relevant because it is considered to contribute to an individual's quality ...
, and market size, Madrid is considered the major financial centre and the leading economic hub of the Iberian Peninsula and of
Southern Europe Southern Europe is the southern region of Europe. It is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is essentially marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of Southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Alb ...
. The metropolitan area hosts major Spanish companies such as
Telefónica Telefónica, S.A. () is a Spanish multinational telecommunications company headquartered in Madrid, Spain. It is one of the largest telephone operators and mobile network providers in the world. It provides fixed and mobile telephony, broadba ...
,
Iberia The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese language, Aragonese and Occitan language, Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a pe ...
,
BBVA Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (), better known by its initialism BBVA, is a Spanish multinational financial services company based in Madrid and Bilbao, Spain. It is one of the largest financial institutions in the world, and is present ...
and
FCC The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdictio ...
. It concentrates the bulk of banking operations in the country and it is the Spanish-speaking city generating the largest amount of webpages. Madrid houses the headquarters of the UN's
World Tourism Organization The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is the United Nations specialized agency entrusted with the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. Its headquarters are in Madrid, Spain. UNWTO is the leading inter ...
(UNWTO), the
Ibero-American General Secretariat The Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB) is the permanent support body to the Pro-Tempore Secretariat in the preparation of Ibero-American Summits. Founded in 2005 in replacement of the Secretariat of Ibero-American Cooperation, its main task ...
(SEGIB), the
Organization of Ibero-American States The Organization of Ibero-American States ( es, Organización de Estados Iberoamericanos, pt, Organização de Estados Iberoamericanos, ca, Organització d'Estats Iberoamericans; abbreviated as OEI), formally the Organization of Ibero-American ...
(OEI), and the Public Interest Oversight Board (PIOB). It also hosts major international regulators and promoters of the Spanish language: the Standing Committee of the Association of Spanish Language Academies, headquarters of the
Royal Spanish Academy The Royal Spanish Academy ( es, Real Academia Española, generally abbreviated as RAE) is Spain's official royal institution with a mission to ensure the stability of the Spanish language. It is based in Madrid, Spain, and is affiliated with ...
(RAE), the
Instituto Cervantes Instituto Cervantes (the Cervantes Institute) is a worldwide nonprofit organization created by the Spanish government in 1991. It is named after Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616), the author of ''Don Quixote'' and perhaps the most important figur ...
and the Foundation of Emerging Spanish (
Fundéu The FundéuRAE (''Fundéu'' being an acronym for es, Fundación del Español Urgente, lit=Foundation of Emerging Spanish) is a non-profit organization founded in February 2005 in Madrid, Spain. The foundation was created in collaboration wit ...
RAE). Madrid organises fairs such as FITUR, ARCO, SIMO TCI and the Madrid Fashion Week. Madrid is home to two world-famous
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
clubs,
Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
and
Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based i ...
. While Madrid possesses modern infrastructure, it has preserved the look and feel of many of its historic neighbourhoods and streets. Its landmarks include the Plaza Mayor, the
Royal Palace of Madrid The Royal Palace of Madrid ( es, Palacio Real de Madrid) is the official residence of the Spanish royal family at the city of Madrid, although now used only for state ceremonies. The palace has of floor space and contains 3,418 rooms. It is the ...
; the Royal Theatre with its restored 1850 Opera House; the
Buen Retiro Park The Buen Retiro Park (Spanish: ''Parque del Buen Retiro'', literally "Good retirement park"), Retiro Park or simply El Retiro is one of the largest parks of the city of Madrid, Spain. The park belonged to the Spanish Monarchy until the late 19th ...
, founded in 1631; the 19th-century
National Library A national library is a library established by a government as a country's preeminent repository of information. Unlike public libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuable, or significant wo ...
building (founded in 1712) containing some of Spain's historical archives; many national museums, and the Golden Triangle of Art, located along the
Paseo del Prado The Paseo del Prado is one of the main boulevards in Madrid, Spain. It runs north–south between the Plaza de Cibeles and the Plaza del Emperador Carlos V (also known as Plaza de Atocha), with the Plaza de Cánovas del Castillo (the loca ...
and comprising three art museums:
Prado Museum The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to house one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from th ...
, the
Reina Sofía Museum Reina (the Spanish word for queen) or La Reina may refer to: Geography * Reina, Badajoz, a municipality in the province of Badajoz, Extremadura, Spain * Reina, Estonia, a village in Saaremaa Parish, Saare County, Estonia * La Reina, a commune ...
, a museum of
modern art Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophies of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the tradi ...
, and the
Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum The Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum (in Spanish, the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza (), named after its founder), or simply the Thyssen, is an art museum in Madrid, Spain, located near the Prado Museum on one of the city's main boulevards. I ...
, which complements the holdings of the other two museums. Cibeles Palace and Fountain has become one of the monument symbols of the city. The mayor is
José Luis Martínez-Almeida José Luis Martínez-Almeida Navasqüés (born 17 April 1975) is a Spanish state lawyer and politician. A member of the People's Party (PP), he has been a member of the Madrid City Council since 2015 and has been Mayor of Madrid since 2019. ...
from the People's Party.


Etymology

There are various theories regarding the origin of the toponym "Madrid" (all of them with problems when it comes to fully explain the phonetic evolution of the toponym along history), namely: *A
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foo ...
origin (Madrid < *''Magetoritum''; with the root "-ritu" meaning " ford"). *From the
Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
''maǧrà'' (meaning "water stream") or ''majrit'' (مجريط meaning "spring", "fountain"). This Majrit (romanized as Magerit) is the first documented name of the place. *A
Mozarabic Mozarabic, also called Andalusi Romance, refers to the medieval Romance varieties spoken in the Iberian Peninsula in territories controlled by the Islamic Emirate of Córdoba and its successors. They were the common tongue for the majority of ...
variant of the Latin ''matrix'', ''matricis'' (also meaning "water stream").


History

The site of modern-day Madrid has been occupied since prehistoric times, and there are archaeological remains of the
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foo ...
Carpetani The Carpetani ( Greek: ''Karpetanoi'') were one of the Celtic pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula (the Roman Hispania, modern Spain and Portugal), akin to the Celtiberians, dwelling in the central part of the '' meseta'' - the high ce ...
settlement,
Roman villa A Roman villa was typically a farmhouse or country house built in the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, sometimes reaching extravagant proportions. Typology and distribution Pliny the Elder (23–79 AD) distinguished two kinds of villas n ...
s, a
Visigoth The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is kn ...
basilica near the church of Santa María de la Almudena and three Visigoth necropoleis near Casa de Campo, Tetuán and Vicálvaro.


Middle Ages

The first historical document about the existence of an established settlement in Madrid dates from the
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
age. At the second half of the 9th century, Cordobese
Emir Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cer ...
Muhammad I built a fortress on a headland near the river Manzanares, as one of the many fortresses he ordered to be built on the border between
Al-Andalus Al-Andalus translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label= Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, al-Ándalus () was the M ...
and the kingdoms of León and Castile, with the objective of protecting Toledo from the Christian invasions and also as a starting point for Muslim offensives. After the disintegration of the
Caliphate of Córdoba The Caliphate of Córdoba ( ar, خلافة قرطبة; transliterated ''Khilāfat Qurṭuba''), also known as the Cordoban Caliphate was an Islamic state ruled by the Umayyad dynasty from 929 to 1031. Its territory comprised Iberia and part ...
in the early 11th century, Madrid was integrated in the
Taifa of Toledo The Taifa of Toledo () was an islamic polity ('' taifa'') located in the centre of the Iberian Peninsula in the high middle ages. It was ruled by the Dhulnunids, a Hawwara Berber clan. It emerged after 1018 upon the fracturing of the Caliphate of ...
. In the context of the wider campaign for the conquest of the taifa of Toledo initiated in 1079, Madrid was seized in 1083 by
Alfonso VI of León and Castile Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsul ...
, who sought to use the town as an offensive outpost against the city of Toledo, in turn conquered in 1085. Following the conquest, Christians occupied the center of the city, while Muslims and Jews were displaced to the suburbs. Madrid, located near Alcalá (under Muslim control until 1118), remained a borderland for a while, suffering a number of '' razzias'' during the
Almoravid The Almoravid dynasty ( ar, المرابطون, translit=Al-Murābiṭūn, lit=those from the ribats) was an imperial Berber Muslim dynasty centered in the territory of present-day Morocco. It established an empire in the 11th century tha ...
period and its walls were destroyed in 1110. The city was confirmed as ''villa de '' (linked to the Crown) in 1123, during the reign of
Alfonso VII Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. ...
. The 1123 Charter of Otorgamiento established the first explicit limits between Madrid and Segovia, namely the Puerto de El Berrueco and the Puerto de Lozoya. Since 1188, Madrid won the right to be a city with representation in the courts of Castile. In 1202,
Alfonso VIII Alfonso VIII (11 November 11555 October 1214), called the Noble (''El Noble'') or the one of Las Navas (''el de las Navas''), was King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. After having suffered a great defeat with his own army at ...
gave Madrid its first charter to regulate the municipal council, which was expanded in 1222 by Ferdinand III. The government system of the town was changed to a ''
regimiento The regimiento, cabildo de regidores or concejo cerrado ("closed council") was a system of local government established from the 14h century onwards in the Crown of Castile.; ; A feature of the progressive oligarchization of the form of government ...
'' of 12 ''
regidor A regidor (plural: ''regidores'') is a member of a council of municipalities in Spain and Latin America. Portugal also used to have the same office of ''regedor''. Mexico In Mexico, an ayuntamiento (municipal council) is composed of a municipal ...
es'' by Alfonso XI on 6 January 1346. Since the mid-13th century and up to the late 14th century, the ''concejo'' of Madrid vied for the control of the Real de Manzanares territory against the ''concejo'' of
Segovia Segovia ( , , ) is a city in the autonomous community of Castile and León, Spain. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the Province of Segovia. Segovia is in the Inner Plateau ('' Meseta central''), near the northern slopes of t ...
, a powerful town north of the
Sierra de Guadarrama The Sierra de Guadarrama (Guadarrama Mountains) is a mountain range forming the main eastern section of the Sistema Central, the system of mountain ranges along the centre of the Iberian Peninsula. It is located between the systems Sierra de G ...
mountain range, characterised by its repopulating prowess and its husbandry-based economy, contrasted by the agricultural and less competent in repopulation town of Madrid. After the decline of Sepúlveda, another ''concejo'' north of the mountain range, Segovia had become a major actor south of the Guadarrama mountains, expanding across the
Lozoya Lozoya () is a municipality in the Community of Madrid The Community of Madrid (; es, Comunidad de Madrid ) is one of the seventeen autonomous communities of Spain. It is located in the centre of the Iberian Peninsula, and of the Central ...
and Manzanares rivers to the north of Madrid and along the Guadarrama river course to its west. In 1309, the Courts of Castile convened at Madrid for the first time under Ferdinand IV, and later in 1329, 1339, 1391, 1393, 1419 and twice in 1435.


Modern Age

During the revolt of the Comuneros, led by
Juan de Padilla Juan de Padilla, OFM (1500–1542) was a Spanish Catholic priest and missionary who spent much of his life exploring North America with Francisco Vásquez de Coronado. He was killed in what would become Kansas by Native Americans in 1542. ...
, Madrid joined the revolt against Charles, Holy Roman Emperor, but after defeat at the
Battle of Villalar The Battle of Villalar was a battle in the Revolt of the Comuneros fought on 23 April 1521 near the town of Villalar in Valladolid province, Spain. The royalist supporters of King Charles I won a crushing victory over the comuneros rebels. ...
, Madrid was besieged and occupied by the imperial troops. The city was however granted the titles of ''Coronada'' (Crowned) and ''Imperial''. The number of urban inhabitants grew from 4,060 in the year 1530 to 37,500 in the year 1594. The poor population of the court was composed of ex-soldiers, foreigners, rogues and Ruanes, dissatisfied with the lack of food and high prices. In June 1561 Phillip II set his court in Madrid, installing it in the old ''alcázar''. Thanks to this, the city of Madrid became the political centre of the monarchy, being the capital of Spain except for a short period between 1601 and 1606, in which the Court was relocated to
Valladolid Valladolid () is a municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and de facto capital of the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. It has a population around 300,000 peop ...
(and the Madrid population temporarily plummeted accordingly). Being the capital was decisive for the evolution of the city and influenced its fate and during the rest of the reign of Philip II, the population boomed, going up from about 18,000 in 1561 to 80,000 in 1598. During the early 17th century, although Madrid recovered from the loss of the capital status, with the return of diplomats, lords and affluent people, as well as an entourage of noted writers and artists together with them, extreme poverty was however rampant. The century also was a time of heyday for theatre, represented in the so-called ''corrales de comedias''. The city changed hands several times during the
War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...
: from the Bourbon control it passed to the allied "Austracist" army with Portuguese and English presence that , only to be retaken by the Bourbon army on 4 August 1706. The Habsburg army led by the Archduke Charles in September 1710, leaving the city less than three months after. Philip V entered the capital on 3 December 1710. Seeking to take advantage of the Madrid's location at the geographic centre of Spain, the 18th century saw a sustained effort to create a radial system of communications and transports for the country through public investments. Philip V built the Royal Palace, the Royal Tapestry Factory and the main Royal Academies. The reign of
Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person ...
, who came to be known as "the best mayor of Madrid", saw an effort to turn the city into a true capital, with the construction of sewers, street lighting, cemeteries outside the city and a number of monuments and cultural institutions. The reforms enacted by his Sicilian minister were however opposed in 1766 by the populace in the so-called Esquilache Riots, a revolt demanding to repeal a clothing decree banning the use of traditional hats and long cloaks aiming to curb crime in the city. In the context of the
Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spai ...
, the situation in French-occupied Madrid after March 1808 was becoming more and more tense. On 2 May, a crowd began to gather near the
Royal Palace This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent. Africa * Abdin Palace, Cairo * Al-Gawhara Palace, Cairo * Koubbeh Palace, Cairo * Tahra Palace, Cairo * Menelik Palace * Jubilee Palace * Guenete Leul Palace * Imperial Palace- ...
protesting against the French attempt to evict the remaining members of the Bourbon royal family to
Bayonne Bayonne (; eu, Baiona ; oc, label= Gascon, Baiona ; es, Bayona) is a city in Southwestern France near the Spanish border. It is a commune and one of two subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine r ...
, prompting up an uprising against the French Imperial troops that lasted hours and spread throughout the city, including a famous last stand at the Monteleón barracks. Subsequent repression was brutal, with many insurgent Spaniards being
summarily executed A summary execution is an execution in which a person is accused of a crime and immediately killed without the benefit of a full and fair trial. Executions as the result of summary justice (such as a drumhead court-martial) are sometimes include ...
. The uprising led to a declaration of war calling all the Spaniards to fights against the French invaders.


Capital of the Liberal State

The city was invaded on 24 May 1823 by a French army—the so-called
Hundred Thousand Sons of Saint Louis "The Hundred Thousand Sons of Saint Louis" was the popular name for a French army mobilized in 1823 by the Bourbon King of France, Louis XVIII, to help the Spanish Royalists restore King Ferdinand VII of Spain to the absolute power of which he ...
—called to intervene to restore the
absolutism Absolutism may refer to: Government * Absolute monarchy, in which a monarch rules free of laws or legally organized opposition * Absolutism (European history), period c. 1610 – c. 1789 in Europe ** Enlightened absolutism, influenced by the En ...
of Ferdinand that the latter had been deprived from during the 1820–1823 ''trienio liberal''. Unlike other European capitals, during the first half of the 19th century the only noticeable bourgeois elements in Madrid (that experienced a delay in its industrial development up to that point) were merchants. The University of Alcalá de Henares was relocated to Madrid in 1836, becoming the Central University. The economy of the city further modernized during the second half of the 19th century, consolidating its status as a service and financial centre. New industries were mostly focused in book publishing, construction and low-tech sectors. The introduction of railway transport greatly helped Madrid's economic prowess, and led to changes in consumption patterns (such as the substitution of salted fish for fresh fish from the Spanish coasts) as well as further strengthening the city's role as a logistics node in the country's distribution network. Electric lightning in the streets was introduced in the 1890s. During the first third of the 20th century the population nearly doubled, reaching more than 850,000 inhabitants. New suburbs such as Las Ventas, Tetuán and El Carmen became the homes of the influx of workers, while
Ensanche means "widening" in Spanish. It is used to name the development areas of Spanish cities around the end of the 19th century, when the demographic explosion and the Industrial Revolution prompted the tearing down of the old city wall and the cons ...
became a middle-class neighbourhood of Madrid.


Second Republic and Civil War

The
Spanish Constitution of 1931 The Spanish Constitution of 1931 was approved by the Constituent Assembly on 9 December 1931. It was the constitution of the Second Spanish Republic (founded 14 April 1931) and was in force until 1 April 1939. This was the second period of Spanis ...
was the first to legislate the location of the country's capital, setting it explicitly in Madrid. During the 1930s, Madrid enjoyed "great vitality"; it was demographically young, becoming urbanized and the centre of new political movements. During this time, major construction projects were undertaken, including the northern extension of the
Paseo de la Castellana Paseo de la Castellana, commonly known as La Castellana, is a major thoroughfare in Madrid, Spain. Cutting across the city from South to North, it has been described as the "true structuring axis" of the city. History and description The street ...
, one of Madrid's major thoroughfares. The tertiary sector, including banking, insurance and telephone services, grew greatly. Illiteracy rates were down to below 20%, and the city's cultural life grew notably during the so-called ''Silver Age'' of Spanish Culture; the sales of newspapers also increased. Conversely, the proclamation of the Republic created a severe housing shortage. Slums and squalor grew due to high population growth and the influx of the poor to the city. Construction of affordable housing failed to keep pace and increased political instability discouraged economic investment in housing in the years immediately prior to the Civil War. Anti-clericalism and Catholicism lived side by side in Madrid; the burning of convents initiated after riots in the city in May 1931 worsened the political environment. However, the 1934 insurrection largely failed in the city. Madrid was one of the most heavily affected cities in the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...
(1936–1939). It was a stronghold of the Republican faction from July 1936 and became an international symbol of
anti-fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers wer ...
struggle during the conflict. The city suffered aerial bombing, and in November 1936, its western suburbs were the scene of an all-out battle. The city fell to the Francoists in March 1939.


Francoist dictatorship

A staple of post-war Madrid (''Madrid de la posguerra'') was the widespread use of ration coupons. Meat and fish consumption was scarce, resulting in high mortality due to malnutrition. Due to its history as a left-wing stronghold, the right-wing victors toyed with the possibility of moving the capital elsewhere (most notably to
Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Penins ...
), such plans were never implemented. The Franco regime instead emphasized the city's history as the capital of formerly imperial Spain. The intense demographic growth experienced by the city via mass immigration from the rural areas of the country led to the construction of plenty of housing in the peripheral areas of the city to absorb the new population (reinforcing the processes of social polarization of the city), initially comprising substandard housing (with as many as 50,000
shack A shack (or, in some areas, shanty) is a type of small shelter or dwelling, often primitive or rudimentary in design and construction. Unlike huts, shacks are constructed by hand using available materials; however, whereas huts are usually r ...
s scattered around the city by 1956). A transitional planning intended to temporarily replace the shanty towns were the ''poblados de absorción'', introduced since the mid-1950s in locations such as Canillas, San Fermín, Caño Roto, Villaverde, , Zofío and Fuencarral, aiming to work as a sort of "high-end" shacks (with the destinataries participating in the construction of their own housing) but under the aegis of a wider coordinated urban planning. Madrid grew through the annexation of neighboring municipalities, achieving the present extent of . The south of Madrid became heavily industrialized, and there was significant
immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, ...
from rural areas of Spain. Madrid's newly built north-western districts became the home of a newly enriched middle class that appeared as result of the 1960s Spanish economic boom, while the south-eastern periphery became a large working-class area, which formed the base for active cultural and political movements.


Recent history

After the fall of the Francoist regime, the new 1978 constitution confirmed Madrid as the capital of Spain. The 1979 municipal election brought Madrid's first democratically elected mayor since the Second Republic to power. Madrid was the scene of some of the most important events of the time, such as the mass demonstrations of support for democracy after the failed coup,
23-F 3F or 3-F may refer to: * Fagligt Fælles Forbund * Fangio, Farina, Fagioli - drivers of the Alfa Romeo factory team * 3 Fonteinen - Belgian brewery, specializing in gueuze and kriek * 0x3F, ASCII code for question mark * Tres de Febrero Partido ...
, on 23 February 1981. The first democratic mayors belonged to the centre-left PSOE (
Enrique Tierno Galván Enrique Tierno Galván (Madrid, 8 February 1918 – Madrid, 19 January 1986) was a Spanish politician, sociologist, lawyer and essayist, best known for being the Mayor of Madrid from 1979 to 1986, at the beginning of the new period of Spanish de ...
,
Juan Barranco Gallardo Juan Antonio Barranco Gallardo (born 13 August 1947 in Santiago de Calatrava, Jaén Province) is a retired Spanish politician in the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party. He was Mayor of Madrid following the 1986 death of Enrique Tierno Galván, w ...
). Since the late 1970s and through the 1980s Madrid became the center of the cultural movement known as ''
la Movida LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...
''. Conversely, just like in the rest of the country, a
heroin crisis In the United States, the opioid epidemic (also known as the opioid crisis) is an extensive ongoing overuse of opioid medications, both from medical prescriptions and from illegal sources. The epidemic began in the United States in the late ...
took a toll in the poor neighborhoods of Madrid in the 1980s. Benefiting from increasing prosperity in the 1980s and 1990s, the capital city of Spain consolidated its position as an important economic, cultural, industrial, educational, and technological centre on the European continent. During the mandate as Mayor of José María Álvarez del Manzano construction of traffic tunnels below the city proliferated. The following administrations, also conservative, led by
Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón Jiménez (born 11 December 1958) is a Spanish politician and former Minister of Justice. He was mayor of Madrid between 2003 and 2011. A stalwart of the conservative People's Party (PP), he has previously been a leadin ...
and
Ana Botella Ana Botella Serrano (born 23 July 1953) is a Spanish politician belonging to the People's Party and the first female Mayor of Madrid, from December 2011 to June 2015. Biography Early life Born in Madrid on 23 July 1953, she took her basi ...
launched three unsuccessful bids for the 2012, 2016 and 2020 Summer Olympics. By 2005, Madrid was the leading European destination for migrants from
developing countries A developing country is a sovereign state with a lesser developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to other countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreem ...
, as well as the largest employer of non-European workforce in Spain. Madrid was a centre of the
anti-austerity protests The anti-austerity movement refers to the mobilisation of street protests and grassroots campaigns that has happened across various countries, especially in Europe, since the onset of the worldwide Great Recession. Anti-austerity actions are var ...
that erupted in Spain in 2011. As consequence of the spillover of the 2008 financial and mortgage crisis, Madrid has been affected by the increasing number of second-hand homes held by banks and house evictions. The mandate of left-wing Mayor
Manuela Carmena Manuela Carmena Castrillo (; born in 1944) is a retired Spanish lawyer and judge who served as Mayor of Madrid from June 2015 to June 2019. She was a member of the General Council of the Judiciary. Biography Early life She was born on 9 Feb ...
(2015–2019) delivered the renaturalization of the course of the Manzanares across the city. Since the late 2010s, the challenges the city faces include the increasingly unaffordable rental prices (often in parallel with the
gentrification Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and planning. Gentrification often increases the ...
and the spike of tourist apartments in the city centre) and the profusion of
betting shop In the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, a betting shop is a shop away from a racecourse ("off-course") where one can legally place bets in person with a licensed bookmaker. Most shops are part of chains including William Hill, ...
s in working-class areas, leading to an "epidemic" of gambling among young people.


Geography


Location

Madrid lies in the centre of the Iberian peninsula on the southern
Meseta Central The ''Meseta Central'' (, sometimes referred to in English as Inner Plateau) is one of the basic geographical units of the Iberian Peninsula. It consists of a plateau covering a large part of the latter's interior. Developed during the 19th cent ...
, 60 km south of the
Guadarrama mountain range The Sierra de Guadarrama (Guadarrama Mountains) is a mountain range forming the main eastern section of the Sistema Central, the system of mountain ranges along the centre of the Iberian Peninsula. It is located between the systems Sierra de Gr ...
and straddling the
Jarama Jarama () is a river in central Spain. It flows north to south, and passes east of Madrid where the El Atazar Dam is built on a tributary, the Lozoya River. It flows into the river Tagus in Aranjuez. The Manzanares is a tributary of the Jaram ...
and Manzanares river sub-drainage basins, in the wider
Tagus River The Tagus ( ; es, Tajo ; pt, Tejo ; see below) is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula. The river rises in the Montes Universales near Teruel, in mid-eastern Spain, flows , generally west with two main south-westward sections, to ...
catchment area. With an average altitude of , Madrid is the second highest capital of
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
(after
Andorra la Vella Andorra la Vella french: Andorre-la-Vieille is the capital of the Principality of Andorra. It is located high in the east Pyrenees, between France and Spain. It is also the name of the parish that surrounds the capital. , the city has a popu ...
). There is a considerable difference in altitude within the city proper ranging from the around
Plaza de Castilla The Plaza de Castilla ( en, "Castile Square") is a roundabout in the north of Madrid, Spain. Location It is located in the north of the city and is bisected by Paseo de la Castellana, one of the main thoroughfares of the capital, almost at its ...
in the north of city to the around ''La China'' wastewater treatment plant on the Manzanares' riverbanks, near the latter's confluence with the Fuente Castellana
thalweg In geography and fluvial geomorphology, a thalweg or talweg () is the line of lowest elevation within a valley or watercourse. Under international law, a thalweg is the middle of the primary navigable channel of a waterway that defines the boun ...
in the south of the city. The Monte de El Pardo (a protected forested area covering over a quarter of the municipality) reaches its top altitude () on its perimeter, in the slopes surrounding located at the north-western end of the municipality, in the
Fuencarral-El Pardo Fuencarral-El Pardo is one of the 21 districts that form the city of Madrid, Spain. Overview Fuencarral-El Pardo is the district number 8 and consists of the following neighborhoods: El Pardo (81), Fuentelarreina (82), Peñagrande (83), Pilar (84) ...
district. The oldest urban core is located on the hills next to the left bank of the Manzanares River. The city grew to the east, reaching the (now the
Paseo de la Castellana Paseo de la Castellana, commonly known as La Castellana, is a major thoroughfare in Madrid, Spain. Cutting across the city from South to North, it has been described as the "true structuring axis" of the city. History and description The street ...
), and further east reaching the (now the M-30). The city also grew through the annexation of neighbouring urban settlements, including those to the South West on the right bank of the Manzanares.


Climate

Madrid has a
Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...
( Köppen ''Csa'') with continental influences in the western half of the city transitioning to a
semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi ...
(''BSk'') in the eastern half. Winters are cool due to its altitude, which is approximately
above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance ( height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as '' orthometric heights''. Th ...
and distance from the moderating effect of the sea. While mostly sunny, rain, sporadic snowfalls and frequent frosts can occur between December and February with cooler temperatures particularly during the night and mornings as cold winds blow into the city from surrounding mountains. Summers are hot and sunny, in the warmest month, July, average temperatures during the day range from depending on location, with maxima commonly climbing over and occasionally up to 40 °C during the frequent heat waves. Due to Madrid's altitude and dry climate, humidity is low and diurnal ranges are often significant, particularly on sunny winter days when the temperature rises in the afternoon before rapidly plummeting after nightfall. Madrid is among the sunniest capital cities in Europe. The highest recorded temperature was on 14 August 2021, with and the lowest recorded temperature was on 16 January 1945 with in Madrid. While on the airport, in the eastern side of the city, the highest recorded temperature was on 24 July 1995, at , and the lowest recorded temperature was on 16 January 1945 at . From 7 January to 9 January 2021, Madrid received the most snow in its recorded history since 1904; Spain's meteorological agency
AEMET The State Meteorological Agency (, AEMET) is a state agency of the Government of Spain responsible for providing weather forecast, warnings of hazardous weather and assisting the administrations in such matters. The AEMET is part of the Secretaria ...
reported between of accumulated snow in its
weather station A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for measuring atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include tempera ...
s within the city.
Precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...
is typically concentrated in the autumn and spring, and, together with
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...
, which has similar annual precipitation, Madrid is the European capital with less annual precipitation. It is particularly sparse during the summer, taking the form of about two showers and/or thunderstorms during the season. At the metropolitan scale, Madrid features both substantial daytime urban cool island and nightime
urban heat island An urban heat island (UHI) is an urban or metropolitan area that is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas due to human activities. The temperature difference is usually larger at night than during the day, and is most apparent ...
effects during the hot season in relation to its surroundings, which feature thinly vegetated dry land.


Water supply

In the 17th century, the ''viajes de agua'' (a kind of water channels or ''
qanat A qanat or kārīz is a system for transporting water from an aquifer or water well to the surface, through an underground aqueduct; the system originated approximately 3,000 BC in what is now Iran. The function is essentially the same across ...
'') were used to provide water to the city. Some of the most important ones were the (1610–1621, sponsored by the Crown), the (1613–1620) and / (1617–1630), sponsored by the City Council. They were the main infrastructure for the supply of water until the arrival of the
Canal de Isabel II Canal de Isabel II (CYII) is the only company that manages the water supplies for Madrid, Spain. It is owned by the Autonomous Community of Madrid. History The '' Y'' in the abbreviated form of the company's name is from the old spelling ''Ysabel ...
in the mid-19th century. Madrid derives almost 73.5 percent of its
water supply Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavors or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes. Public water supply systems are crucial to properly functioning societies. Th ...
from dams and reservoirs built on the Lozoya River, such as the
El Atazar Dam El Atazar Dam is an arch dam built near Madrid, Spain on the Lozoya River, very close to where the Lozoya joins the Jarama. The curved design of the dam is optimum for the narrow gorge in which it was built to retain water in the reservoir. Arch ...
. This water supply is managed by the Canal de Isabel II, a public entity created in 1851. It is responsible for the supply, depurating waste water and the conservation of all the natural water resources of the Madrid region.


Demographics

The population of Madrid has overall increased since the city became the capital of Spain in the mid-16th century, and has stabilised at approximately 3 million since the 1970s. From 1970 until the mid-1990s, the population dropped. This phenomenon, which also affected other European cities, was caused in part by the growth of satellite suburbs at the expense of the downtown region within the city proper. The demographic boom accelerated in the late 1990s and early first decade of the 21st century due to
immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, ...
in parallel with a surge in Spanish
economic growth Economic growth can be defined as the increase or improvement in the inflation-adjusted market value of the goods and services produced by an economy in a financial year. Statisticians conventionally measure such growth as the percent rate o ...
. The wider Madrid region is the EU region with the highest average life expectancy at birth. The average life expectancy was 82.2 years for males and 87.8 for females in 2016. As the capital city of Spain, the city has attracted many immigrants from around the world, with most of the immigrants coming from
Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...
n countries. In 2020, around 76% of the registered population was Spain-born, while, regarding the foreign-born population (24%), the bulk of it relates to
the Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...
(around 16% of the total population), and a lesser fraction of the population is born in other
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
an,
Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
n and
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
n countries. As of 2019 the highest rising national group of immigrants was Venezuelans. Regarding religious beliefs, according to a 2019
Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas The Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas ("Centre for Sociological Research") or CIS is a Spanish public research institute. It was founded in 1963 as the Instituto de la Opinión Pública, and in 1977, after the Spanish general election in ...
(CIS) survey with a sample size of 469 respondents, 20.7% of respondents in Madrid identify themselves as practising
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
s, 45.8% as non-practising Catholics, 3.8% as believers of another religion, 11.1% as
agnostics Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, of the divine or the supernatural is unknown or unknowable. (page 56 in 1967 edition) Another definition provided is the view that "human reason is incapable of providing sufficient ...
, 3.6% as indifferent towards religion, and 12.8% as
atheists Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no d ...
. The remaining 2.1% did not state their religious beliefs. The Madrid metropolitan area comprises Madrid and the surrounding municipalities. According to
Eurostat Eurostat ('European Statistical Office'; DG ESTAT) is a Directorate-General of the European Commission located in the Kirchberg, Luxembourg, Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. Eurostat's main responsibilities are to provide stati ...
, the "metropolitan region" of Madrid has a population of slightly more than 6.271 million people covering an area of . It is the largest in Spain and the second largest in the European Union.


Government


Local government and administration

The City Council (''Ayuntamiento de Madrid'') is the body responsible for the government and administration of the municipality. It is formed by the Plenary (''Pleno''), the Mayor (''alcalde'') and the Government Board (''Junta de Gobierno de la Ciudad de Madrid''). The Plenary of the Ayuntamiento is the body of political representation of the citizens in the
municipal government A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...
. Its 57 members are elected for a 4-year mandate. Some of its attributions are: fiscal matters, the election and deposition of the mayor, the approval and modification of decrees and regulations, the approval of budgets, the agreements related to the limits and alteration of the municipal term, the services management, the participation in supramunicipal organisations, etc. The mayor, the supreme representative of the city, presides over the ''Ayuntamiento''. He is charged with giving impetus to the municipal policies, managing the action of the rest of bodies and directing the executive municipal administration. He is responsible to the ''Pleno''. He is also entitled to preside over the meetings of the ''Pleno'', although this responsibility can be delegated to another municipal councillor.
José Luis Martínez-Almeida José Luis Martínez-Almeida Navasqüés (born 17 April 1975) is a Spanish state lawyer and politician. A member of the People's Party (PP), he has been a member of the Madrid City Council since 2015 and has been Mayor of Madrid since 2019. ...
, a member of the People's Party, serves as mayor since 2019. The Government Board consists of the mayor, deputy mayors and a number of delegates assuming the portfolios for the different government areas. All those positions are held by municipal councillors. Since 2007, the
Cybele Palace Cibeles Palace ( Spanish: ''Palacio de Cibeles''), formally known as Palacio de Comunicaciones (''Palace of Communications'') and Palacio de Telecomunicaciones (''Palace of Telecommunications'') until 2011, is a complex composed of two building ...
(or Palace of Communications) serves as
City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
.


Administrative subdivisions

Madrid is administratively divided into 21 districts, which are further subdivided into 131 neighbourhoods (''barrios''):


Regional capital

Madrid is the capital of the Community of Madrid. The region has its own legislature and enjoys a wide range of competencies in areas such as social spending, healthcare, and education. The seat of the regional parliament, the
Assembly of Madrid The Assembly of Madrid or Madrid Assembly ( es, Asamblea de Madrid) is the unicameral autonomous legislature of the Autonomous Community of Madrid since the approval of the Madrid Charter of Autonomy in 1983. It is elected every four years duri ...
, is located at the district of
Puente de Vallecas Puente de Vallecas (''Bridge of Vallecas'') is one of the 21 districts of the city of Madrid, Spain. It forms, with the district of Villa de Vallecas Villa de Vallecas (''Village of Vallecas'') is one of the 21 districts of the city of Madrid, S ...
. The presidency of the regional government is headquartered at the
Royal House of the Post Office The Royal House of the Post Office (Spanish: ''Real Casa de Correos'') is an eighteenth century building in Puerta del Sol, Madrid. It was built for the postal service, but currently serves as the office of the President of the Community of Madr ...
at the very centre of the city, the
Puerta del Sol The Puerta del Sol ( English: "Gate of the Sun") is a public square in Madrid, one of the best known and busiest places in the city. This is the centre ('' Km 0'') of the radial network of Spanish roads. The square also contains the famous c ...
.


Capital of Spain

Madrid is the capital of Spain. The
King of Spain , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...
, the country's head of state, has his official residence in the
Zarzuela Palace The Zarzuela Palace ( es, Palacio de la Zarzuela ) is the residence and working offices of the reigning monarch of Spain ( King Felipe VI), although the official residence of the Spanish royal family is the Royal Palace of Madrid. The Zarzuela Pa ...
. As the seat of the
Government of Spain gl, Goberno de España eu, Espainiako Gobernua , image = , caption = Logo of the Government of Spain , headerstyle = background-color: #efefef , label1 = Role , data1 = Executive power , label2 = Established , d ...
, Madrid also houses the official residence of the President of the Government (Prime Minister) and regular meeting place of the
Council of Ministers A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or ...
, the
Moncloa Palace The Palace of Moncloa or Moncloa Palace ( es, Palacio de la Moncloa) is the official residence and workplace of the Prime Minister of Spain. It is located in Puerta de Hierro Avenue, in the Moncloa-Aravaca district in Madrid. It has been the off ...
, as well as the headquarters of the ministerial departments. Both the residences of the head of state and government are located at the northwest of the city. Additionally, the seats of the Lower and Upper Chambers of the Spanish Parliament, the Cortes Generales (respectively, the
Palacio de las Cortes Palacio de las Cortes is a building in Madrid where the Spanish Congress of Deputies meets. It is located on the Calle Zorrilla and the Carrera de San Jerónimo, near the Paseo del Prado. It was built by Narciso Pascual Colomer from 1843 to 185 ...
and the Palacio del Senado), also lie on Madrid.


Law enforcement

The Madrid Municipal Police (''Policía Municipal de Madrid'') is the local law enforcement body, dependent on the ''Ayuntamiento''. As of 2018, it had a workforce of civil servants. The headquarters of both the
Directorate-General of the Police The Directorate-General of the Police (DGP) is a component of the Spanish Department of the Interior responsible for exercising the direct command of the National Police Corps, the main civil law enforcement agency of Spain. The DGP, integrated i ...
and the Directorate-General of the Civil Guard are located in Madrid. The headquarters of the Higher Office of Police of Madrid (''Jefatura Superior de Policía de Madrid''), the peripheral branch of the
National Police Corps The National Police Corps ( es, Cuerpo Nacional de Policía, link=no, CNP; ; also known simply as National Police, ) is the national civilian police force of Spain. The CNP is mainly responsible for policing urban areas, whilst rural policing ...
with jurisdiction over the region also lies on Madrid.


Cityscape


Architecture

Little medieval architecture is preserved in Madrid, mostly in the
Almendra Central The Almendra Central ( en, Central Almond) is a zone of Madrid comprising seven districts: Centro, Arganzuela, Retiro, Salamanca, Chamartín, Tetuán, and Chamberí, (even though, sometimes, the City Council of Madrid includes part of an eighth, ...
, including the San Nicolás and San Pedro el Viejo church towers, the church of San Jerónimo el Real, and the Bishop's Chapel. Nor has Madrid retained much Renaissance architecture, other than the Bridge of Segovia and the
Convent of Las Descalzas Reales The Convent of Las Descalzas Reales ( es, Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales) is a royal monastery situated in Madrid, Spain, administered by the Patrimonio Nacional. History The ''Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales'', literally the "Monaste ...
. Philip II moved his court to Madrid in 1561 and transformed the town into a capital city. During the Early Hapsburg period, the import of European influences took place, underpinned by the monicker of ''Austrian style''. The Austrian style featured not only Austrian influences but also Italian and Dutch (as well as Spanish), reflecting on the international preeminence of the Habsburgs. During the second half of the 16th century, the use of pointy slate
spire A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spires a ...
s in order to top structures such as church towers was imported to Spain from Central Europe. Slate spires and roofs consequently became a staple of the Madrilenian architecture at the time. Stand out architecture in the city dating back to the early 17th century includes several buildings and structures (most of them attributed to
Juan Gómez de Mora Juan Gómez de Mora (1586–1648) was a Spanish architect, active in the 17th century. He was a main figure of Spanish early-Baroque architecture in the city of Madrid. Gómez de Mora was born and died in Madrid. His father, also , was a Sp ...
) such as the Palace of the Duke of Uceda (1610), the Monastery of La Encarnación (1611–1616); the Plaza Mayor (1617–1619) or the ''Cárcel de Corte'' (1629–1641), currently known as the Santa Cruz Palace. The century also saw the construction of the former City Hall, the Casa de la Villa. The
Imperial College Imperial College London (legally Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom. Its history began with Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria, who developed his vision for a cu ...
church model dome was imitated in all of Spain.
Pedro de Ribera Pedro de Ribera (Madrid 4 August 1681 - Madrid, 1742) was a Spanish architect of the Baroque period. Biography Ribera worked almost exclusively in Madrid during the first half of the 18th century. He was a disciple of José Benito de Churriguera ...
introduced
Churrigueresque Churrigueresque (; Spanish: ''Churrigueresco''), also but less commonly "Ultra Baroque", refers to a Spanish Baroque style of elaborate sculptural architectural ornament which emerged as a manner of stucco decoration in Spain in the late 17th ...
architecture to Madrid; the
Cuartel del Conde-Duque The Cuartel del Conde-Duque (Spanish: ''Cuartel del Conde-Duque'') is a building located in Madrid, Spain. It was declared ''Bien de Interés Cultural A Bien de Interés Cultural is a category of the heritage register in Spain. The term is also ...
, the church of Montserrat, and the Bridge of Toledo are among the best examples. The reign of the Bourbons during the eighteenth century marked a new era in the city. Philip V tried to complete King Philip II's vision of urbanisation of Madrid. Philip V built a palace in line with French taste, as well as other buildings such as St. Michael's Basilica and the Church of Santa Bárbara. King
Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person ...
beautified the city and endeavoured to convert Madrid into one of the great European capitals. He pushed forward the construction of the Prado Museum (originally intended as a Natural Science Museum), the
Puerta de Alcalá The Puerta de Alcalá is a Neo-classical gate in the Plaza de la Independencia in Madrid, Spain. It was a gate of the former Walls of Philip IV. It stands near the city center and several meters away from the main entrance to the Parque del ...
, the Royal Observatory, the Basilica of San Francisco el Grande, the Casa de Correos in
Puerta del Sol The Puerta del Sol ( English: "Gate of the Sun") is a public square in Madrid, one of the best known and busiest places in the city. This is the centre ('' Km 0'') of the radial network of Spanish roads. The square also contains the famous c ...
, the Real Casa de la Aduana, and the General Hospital (which now houses the Reina Sofia Museum and Royal Conservatory of Music). The
Paseo del Prado The Paseo del Prado is one of the main boulevards in Madrid, Spain. It runs north–south between the Plaza de Cibeles and the Plaza del Emperador Carlos V (also known as Plaza de Atocha), with the Plaza de Cánovas del Castillo (the loca ...
, surrounded by gardens and decorated with neoclassical statues, is an example of urban planning. The Duke of Berwick ordered the construction of the
Liria Palace The Liria Palace ( Spanish: ''Palacio de Liria'') is a neoclassical palace in Madrid, Spain. It is the Madrid residence of the Dukes of Alba. History Built around 1770 to a design by the architect Ventura Rodríguez, it was commissioned by Ja ...
. During the early 19th century, the
Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spai ...
, the loss of viceroyalties in the Americas, and continuing coups limited the city's architectural development ( Royal Theatre, the
National Library of Spain National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...
, the Palace of the Senate, and the
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
). The
Segovia Viaduct The Segovia Viaduct is a viaduct in the La Latina neighborhood in Madrid, Spain. Throughout the centuries the area has been a major crossroad. The bridge's main function has been to facilitate access between the town and the Royal Palace of Madri ...
linked the Royal Alcázar to the southern part of town. The list of key figures of madrilenian architecture during the 19th and 20th centuries includes authors such as Narciso Pascual y Colomer,
Francisco Jareño y Alarcón Francisco Jareño y Alarcón (24 February 1818 – 8 October 1892 ) was a Spanish architect, author of one of the most remarkable official buildings of the Reign of Isabella II of Spain. Life Jareño was born in Albacete on 24 February 1818. He ...
,
Francisco de Cubas 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 189 ...
, Juan Bautista Lázaro de Diego,
Ricardo Velázquez Bosco Ricardo Velázquez Bosco (1843–1923) was a Spanish architect, archaeologist and scholar. Velázquez's most notable architecture was erected in Madrid, buildings such as the Palacio de Cristal and the Palacio de Velázquez (both in the Parque ...
,
Antonio Palacios Antonio Palacios Ramilo (8 January 1874 – 27 October 1945) was a Spanish architect. Distinguished by the monumental eclecticism he left as imprint in many of his projects, he helped define the architectural identity of Madrid in the first half ...
, Secundino Zuazo, Luis Gutiérrez Soto, and Alejandro de la Sota. From the mid-19th century until the Civil War, Madrid modernised and built new neighbourhoods and monuments. The expansion of Madrid developed under the
Plan Castro A plan is typically any diagram or list of steps with details of timing and resources, used to achieve an objective to do something. It is commonly understood as a temporal set of intended actions through which one expects to achieve a goal. F ...
, resulting in the neighbourhoods of
Salamanca Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Herit ...
, Argüelles, and
Chamberí Chamberí is a district of Madrid, Spain. It is further subdivided into six neighborhoods ( Gaztambide, Arapiles, Trafalgar, Almagro, Ríos Rosas and Vallehermoso). The district junta is headquartered at the . The current urban outline was bo ...
. Arturo Soria conceived the
linear city Linear city may refer to: * Linear settlement * Linear city (Soria design), an 1882 concept of city planning * Linear city (Graves and Eisenman design), a 1965 proposal for a settlement in New Jersey * The linear city model of Hotelling's law See ...
and built the first few kilometres of the road that bears his name, which embodies the idea. The Gran Vía was built using different styles that evolved over time: French style, eclectic, art deco, and expressionist. However,
Art Nouveau in Madrid Art Nouveau in Madrid (Spanish: Modernismo madrileño) is the historiographic term given to the artistic style Art Nouveau as it developed in and around Madrid, the capital of Spain, around 1900, permeating architecture, design, the decorative arts ...
, known as ''Modernismo'' did also develop at the turn of the century, in concert with its appearance elsewhere in Europe, including
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
and
Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...
.
Antonio Palacios Antonio Palacios Ramilo (8 January 1874 – 27 October 1945) was a Spanish architect. Distinguished by the monumental eclecticism he left as imprint in many of his projects, he helped define the architectural identity of Madrid in the first half ...
built a series of buildings inspired by the
Viennese Secession The Vienna Secession (german: Wiener Secession; also known as ''the Union of Austrian Artists'', or ''Vereinigung Bildender Künstler Österreichs'') is an art movement, closely related to Art Nouveau, that was formed in 1897 by a group of Austri ...
, such as the Palace of Communication, the
Círculo de Bellas Artes The Círculo de Bellas Artes is a private, non-profit, cultural organization that was founded in 1880. Its building, located in Madrid, Spain, was declared ''Bien de Interés Cultural'' in 1981. The CBA is a major multidisciplinary centre with one ...
, and the Río de La Plata Bank (now
Instituto Cervantes Instituto Cervantes (the Cervantes Institute) is a worldwide nonprofit organization created by the Spanish government in 1991. It is named after Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616), the author of ''Don Quixote'' and perhaps the most important figur ...
). Other notable buildings include the
Bank of Spain The Bank of Spain ( es, link=no, Banco de España) is the central bank of Spain. Established in Madrid in 1782 by Charles III, today the bank is a member of the European System of Central Banks and is also Spain's national competent authority fo ...
, the neo-Gothic
Almudena Cathedral Almudena Cathedral (''Santa María la Real de La Almudena'') is a Catholic church in Madrid, Spain. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Madrid. The cathedral was consecrated by Pope John Paul II in 1993. History When the capita ...
, Atocha Station, and the Catalan art-nouveau Palace of Longoria.
Las Ventas The plaza de toros de Las Ventas, known simply as Las Ventas, is the largest bullfighting ring in Spain, located in the Guindalera quarter of the Salamanca district of Madrid. It was inaugurated on June 17, 1931. Its seating capacity of 23,798, m ...
Bullring was built, as the Market of San Miguel (Cast-Iron style). Following the Francoist takeover that ensued the end of Spanish Civil war, architecture experienced an involution, discarding rationalism and, eclecticism notwithstanding, going back to an overall rather "outmoded" architectural language, with the purpose of turning Madrid into a capital worthy of the "Immortal Spain". Iconic examples of this period include the Ministry of the Air (a case of herrerian revival) and the
Edificio España The Hotel Riu Plaza España is a historic skyscraper, the 8th tallest building in Madrid, Spain. It opened in 1953 as the Edificio España ( es, Spain Building), a mixed-use structure containing a hotel, offices, apartments and shops. It is an exa ...
(presented as the tallest building in Europe when it was inaugurated in 1953). Many of these buildings distinctly combine the use of brick and stone in the façades. The
Casa Sindical The Casa Sindical (the "Syndical House") is a building in Madrid, Spain. It currently hosts the headquarters of the Ministry of Health of Spain. History The contest guidelines for the draft project, convened by Fermín Sanz Orrio, the then nat ...
marked a breaking point as it was the first to reassume rationalism, although that relinking to modernity was undertaken through the imitation of the Italian Fascist architecture. With the advent of Spanish economic development, skyscrapers, such as Torre Picasso, Torres Blancas and Torre BBVA, and the Gate of Europe, appeared in the late 20th century in the city. During the decade of the 2000s, the four tallest skyscrapers in Spain were built and together form the
Cuatro Torres Business Area Área de negocios de Cuatro Torres (ANCA or CTBA), Spanish for "Four Towers Business Area", is a business district located in the Paseo de la Castellana in Madrid, Spain, on the former Ciudad Deportiva of Real Madrid. The area contains the fou ...
. Terminal 4 at Madrid-Barajas Airport was inaugurated in 2006 and won several architectural awards. Terminal 4 is one of the world's largest terminal areas and features glass panes and domes in the roof, which allow natural light to pass through.


Parks and forests

Madrid has the second highest number of aligned trees in the world, with 248,000 units, only exceeded by Tokyo. Madrid's citizens have access to a green area within a 15-minute walk. Since 1997, green areas have increased by 16%. At present, 8.2% of Madrid's grounds are green areas, meaning that there are of green area per inhabitant, far exceeding the per inhabitant recommended by the World Health Organization. A great bulk of the most important parks in Madrid are related to areas originally belonging to the royal assets (including El Pardo, Soto de Viñuelas, Casa de Campo, El Buen Retiro, la Florida and the Príncipe Pío hill, and the Queen's Casino). The other main source for the "green" areas are the ' owned by the municipality (including the Dehesa de la Villa, the Dehesa de Arganzuela or Viveros). El Retiro is the most visited location of the city. Having an area bigger than (350 acres), it is the largest park within the
Almendra Central The Almendra Central ( en, Central Almond) is a zone of Madrid comprising seven districts: Centro, Arganzuela, Retiro, Salamanca, Chamartín, Tetuán, and Chamberí, (even though, sometimes, the City Council of Madrid includes part of an eighth, ...
, the inner part of the city enclosed by the M-30. Created during the reign of Philip IV (17th century), it was handed over to the municipality in 1868, after the Glorious Revolution. It lies next to the
Royal Botanical Garden of Madrid Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...
. Located northwest of the city centre, the
Parque del Oeste The Parque del Oeste (in English: ''Western Park'') is a park of the city of Madrid (Spain) situated between the Autovía A-6, the Ciudad Universitaria de Madrid and the district of Moncloa. Before the 20th century, the land that the park c ...
("Park of the West") comprises part of the area of the former royal possession of the "Real Florida", and it features a slope as the height decreases down to the Manzanares. Its southern extension includes the
Temple of Debod The Temple of Debod ( es, Templo de Debod) is an ancient Egyptian temple that was dismantled as part of the International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia and rebuilt in the center of Madrid, Spain, in Parque de la Montaña, Madrid, a squ ...
, a transported ancient Egyptian temple. Other urban parks are the Parque de El Capricho, the
Parque Juan Carlos I Juan Carlos I Park ( es, Parque Juan Carlos I) is a major municipal park in Madrid, Spain. The park was named after King Juan Carlos I. The park contains many modern sculptures. The architects and urban designers are Jose Luis Esteban Penelas an ...
(both in northeast Madrid), Madrid Río, the , the as well as gardens such as the
Campo del Moro Campo del Moro is a park in Madrid, Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_a ...
(opened to the public in 1978) and the
Sabatini Gardens The Sabatini Gardens (in Spanish: ''Jardines de Sabatini'') are part of the Royal Palace in Madrid, Spain, and were opened to the public by King Juan Carlos I in 1978. They honor the name of Francesco Sabatini (1722–1797), an Italian architec ...
(opened to the public in 1931) near the Royal Palace. Further west, across the Manzanares, lies the
Casa de Campo The Casa de Campo (, for Spanish: ''Country House'') is the largest public park in Madrid. It is situated west of central Madrid, Spain. It gets its name 'Country House' because it was once a royal hunting estate, located just west of the ...
, a large forested area with more than (6.6 sq mi) where the
Madrid Zoo The Madrid Zoo Aquarium is a zoo and aquarium located in the Casa de Campo in Madrid, Spain. The zoo is owned by the city, but is managed by the international entertainment operator Parques Reunidos. Opened in 1770, it is one of the largest z ...
, and the
Parque de Atracciones de Madrid Parque de Atracciones de Madrid is a amusement park located in the Casa de Campo in Madrid, Spain. Opened in 1969, it is the third-oldest operating amusement park in Spain behind Parc d'Atraccions Tibidabo (opened in 1901) and Parque de Atraccion ...
amusement park are located. It was ceded to the municipality following the proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic in 1931. The Monte de El Pardo is the largest forested area in the municipality. A holm oak forest covering a surface over hectares, it is considered the best preserved
mediterranean forest Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub is a biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. The biome is generally characterized by dry summers and rainy winters, although in some areas rainfall may be uniform. Summers are typically hot in ...
in the Community of Madrid and one of the best preserved in Europe. Already mentioned in the Alfonso XI's ' from the mid-14th century, its condition as hunting location linked to the Spanish monarchy help to preserve the environmental value. During the reign of Ferdinand VII the regime of hunting prohibition for the Monte de El Pardo became one of full property and the expropriation of all possessions within its bounds was enforced, with dire consequences for the madrilenians at the time. It is designated as
Special Protection Area A Special Protection Area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certa ...
for bird-life and it is also part of the Regional Park of the High Basin of the Manzanares. Other large forested areas include the Soto de Viñuelas, the and the . As of 2015, the most recent big park in the municipality is the Valdebebas Park. Covering a total area of , it is sub-divided in a forest park (the ), a periurban park as well as municipal garden centres and compost plants.


Economy

After it became the capital of Spain in the 16th century, Madrid was more a centre of consumption than of production or trade. Economic activity was largely devoted to supplying the city's own rapidly growing population, including the royal household and national government, and to such trades as
bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...
ing and
publishing Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...
. A large
industrial sector In macroeconomics, the secondary sector of the economy is an economic sector in the three-sector theory that describes the role of manufacturing. It encompasses industries that produce a finished, usable product or are involved in constructi ...
did not develop until the 20th century, but thereafter industry greatly expanded and diversified, making Madrid the second industrial city in Spain. However, the economy of the city is now becoming more and more dominated by the
service sector The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the second ...
. A major European financial center, its stock market is the third largest stock market in Europe featuring both the IBEX 35 index and the attached stock market (with the second most important index for
Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...
n companies). Madrid is the 5th most important leading Centre of Commerce in Europe (after London, Paris, Frankfurt and Amsterdam) and ranks 11th in the world. It is the leading Spanish-speaking city in terms of webpage creation.


Economic history

As the capital city of the
Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...
from 1561, Madrid's population grew rapidly. Administration, banking, and small-scale manufacturing centred on the royal court were among the main activities, but the city was more a locus of consumption than production or trade, geographically isolated as it was before the coming of the railways. The
Bank of Spain The Bank of Spain ( es, link=no, Banco de España) is the central bank of Spain. Established in Madrid in 1782 by Charles III, today the bank is a member of the European System of Central Banks and is also Spain's national competent authority fo ...
is one of the oldest European central banks. Originally named as the Bank of San Carlos as it was founded in 1782, it was later renamed to Bank of San Fernando in 1829 and ultimately became the Bank of Spain in 1856. Its headquarters are located at the
calle de Alcalá Calle de Alcalá is among the longest streets in Madrid. It starts at the Puerta del Sol and goes on for , to the northeastern outskirts of the city. Henry David Inglis described it in 1837 as "long, of superb width, and flanked by a splendid rang ...
. The
Madrid Stock Exchange Bolsa de Madrid (; Madrid Stock Exchange) is the largest and most international of Spain's four regional stock exchanges (the others are located in Barcelona, Valencia, and Bilbao) that trade shares and convertible bonds and fixed income securiti ...
was inaugurated on 20 October 1831. Its benchmark stock market index is the IBEX 35. Industry started to develop on a large scale only in the 20th century,Juliá, S. et al. (1995), ''Madrid, Historia de una capital'' but then grew rapidly, especially during the " Spanish miracle" period around the 1960s. The economy of the city was then centred on manufacturing industries such as those related to
motor vehicle A motor vehicle, also known as motorized vehicle or automotive vehicle, is a self-propelled land vehicle, commonly wheeled, that does not operate on rails (such as trains or trams) and is used for the transportation of people or cargo. The ...
s, aircraft, chemicals, electronic devices, pharmaceuticals,
processed food Convenience food, also called tertiary processed food, is food that is commercially prepared (often through processing) to optimise ease of consumption. Such food is usually ready to eat without further preparation. It may also be easily p ...
, printed materials, and leather goods. Since the restoration of democracy in the late 1970s, the city has continued to expand. Its economy is now among the most dynamic and diverse in the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
.


Present-day economy

Madrid concentrates activities directly connected with power (central and regional government, headquarters of Spanish companies, regional HQ of multinationals,
financial institutions Financial institutions, sometimes called banking institutions, are business entities that provide services as intermediaries for different types of financial monetary transactions. Broadly speaking, there are three major types of financial insti ...
) and with knowledge and technological innovation (research centres and universities). It is one of Europe's largest financial centres, and the largest in Spain.''Estructura Economica de le Ciudad de Madrid''
, ''Ayuntamiento de Madrid'' (Madrid City Council), August 2013
The city has 17 universities and over 30 research centres. It is the second metropolis in the EU by population, and the third by gross internal product. Leading employers include
Telefónica Telefónica, S.A. () is a Spanish multinational telecommunications company headquartered in Madrid, Spain. It is one of the largest telephone operators and mobile network providers in the world. It provides fixed and mobile telephony, broadba ...
,
Iberia The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese language, Aragonese and Occitan language, Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a pe ...
,
Prosegur Prosegur Compañía de Seguridad, S.A ("Prosegur") is a multinational security company, headquartered in Madrid, Spain. History Prosegur was founded in 1976 by Herberto Gut. It began as a private security company, with a particular focus on ...
,
BBVA Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (), better known by its initialism BBVA, is a Spanish multinational financial services company based in Madrid and Bilbao, Spain. It is one of the largest financial institutions in the world, and is present ...
, Urbaser,
Dragados ACS, Actividades de Construcción y Servicios, S.A. () is a Spanish company dedicated to civil and engineering construction, all types services and telecommunications. It is one of the leading construction companies in the world, with projects ...
, and
FCC The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdictio ...
. The
Community of Madrid The Community of Madrid (; es, Comunidad de Madrid ) is one of the seventeen autonomous communities of Spain. It is located in the centre of the Iberian Peninsula, and of the Central Plateau (''Meseta Central''). Its capital and largest munic ...
, the region comprising the city and the rest of municipalities of the province, had a
GDP Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is ofte ...
of
The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...
220B in 2017, equating to a GDP per capita of €33,800. In 2011 the city itself had a GDP per capita 74% above the national average and 70% above that of the 27
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
member states, although 11% behind the average of the top 10 cities of the EU. Although housing just over 50% of the region's's population, the city generates 65.9% of its GDP. Following the
recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...
commencing 2007/8, recovery was under way by 2014, with forecast growth rates for the city of 1.4% in 2014, 2.7% in 2015 and 2.8% in 2016. The economy of Madrid has become based increasingly on the
service sector The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the second ...
. In 2011 services accounted for 85.9% of value added, while industry contributed 7.9% and
construction Construction is a general term meaning the art and science to form objects, systems, or organizations,"Construction" def. 1.a. 1.b. and 1.c. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) Oxford University Press 2009 and ...
6.1%. Nevertheless, Madrid continues to hold the position of Spain's second industrial centre after Barcelona, specialising particularly in high-technology production. Following the recession, services and industry were forecast to return to growth in 2014, and construction in 2015.


Standard of living

Mean household income and spending are 12% above the Spanish average. The proportion classified as "at risk of poverty" in 2010 was 15.6%, up from 13.0% in 2006 but less than the average for Spain of 21.8%. The proportion classified as affluent was 43.3%, much higher than Spain overall (28.6%). Consumption by Madrid residents has been affected by job losses and by
austerity Austerity is a set of political-economic policies that aim to reduce government budget deficits through spending cuts, tax increases, or a combination of both. There are three primary types of austerity measures: higher taxes to fund spend ...
measures, including a rise in sales tax from 8% to 21% in 2012. Although residential property prices have fallen by 39% since 2007, the average price of dwelling space was €2,375.6 per sq. m. in early 2014, and is shown as second only to London in a list of 22 European cities.


Employment

Participation in the labour force was 1,638,200 in 2011, or 79.0%. The employed workforce comprised 49% women in 2011 (Spain, 45%). 41% of economically active people are university graduates, against 24% for Spain as a whole. In 2011, the unemployment rate was 15.8%, remaining lower than in Spain as a whole. Among those aged 16–24, the unemployment rate was 39.6%. Unemployment reached a peak of 19.1% in 2013, but with the start of an economic recovery in 2014, employment started to increase. Employment continues to shift further towards the service sector, with 86% of all jobs in this sector by 2011, against 74% in all of Spain. In the second quarter of 2018 the unemployment rate was 10.06%.


Services

The share of services in the city's economy is 86%. Services for business, transport & communications, property, and financial together account for 52% of the total value added. The types of services that are now expanding are mainly those that facilitate movement of capital, information, goods and persons, and "advanced business services" such as
research and development Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...
(R&D),
information technology Information technology (IT) is the use of computers to create, process, store, retrieve, and exchange all kinds of data . and information. IT forms part of information and communications technology (ICT). An information technology syste ...
, and technical
accountancy Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "langua ...
. Madrid and the wider region's authorities have put a notable effort in the development of logistics infrastructure. Within the city proper, some of the standout centres include Mercamadrid, the logistics centre, the Villaverde's Logistics Centre and the Vicálvaro's Logistics Centre to name a few.
Bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...
s based in Madrid carry out 72% of the banking activity in Spain. The Spanish
central bank A central bank, reserve bank, or monetary authority is an institution that manages the currency and monetary policy of a country or monetary union, and oversees their commercial banking system. In contrast to a commercial bank, a centra ...
,
Bank of Spain The Bank of Spain ( es, link=no, Banco de España) is the central bank of Spain. Established in Madrid in 1782 by Charles III, today the bank is a member of the European System of Central Banks and is also Spain's national competent authority fo ...
, has existed in Madrid since 1782. Stocks & shares,
bond Bond or bonds may refer to: Common meanings * Bond (finance), a type of debt security * Bail bond, a commercial third-party guarantor of surety bonds in the United States * Chemical bond, the attraction of atoms, ions or molecules to form chemical ...
markets,
insurance Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...
, and
pension fund A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income. Pension funds typically have large amounts of money to invest and are the major investors in listed and priva ...
s are other important forms of financial institution in the city. Madrid is an important centre for
trade fair A trade fair, also known as trade show, trade exhibition, or trade exposition, is an exhibition organized so that companies in a specific industry can showcase and demonstrate their latest products and services, meet with industry partners and ...
s, many of them coordinated by IFEMA, the Trade Fair Institution of Madrid. The
public sector The public sector, also called the state sector, is the part of the economy composed of both public services and public enterprises. Public sectors include the public goods and governmental services such as the military, law enforcement, inf ...
employs 18.1% of all employees. Madrid attracts about 8M tourists annually from other parts of Spain and from all over the world, exceeding even
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
. Spending by tourists in Madrid was estimated (2011) at €9,546.5M, or 7.7% of the city's GDP. The construction of
transport Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipelin ...
infrastructure has been vital to maintain the economic position of Madrid. Travel to work and other local journeys use a high-capacity metropolitan road network and a well-used
public transport Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typi ...
system. In terms of longer-distance transport, Madrid is the central node of the system of ''
autovía An ''autovía'' is one of two classes of major highway in the Spanish road system similar to a British motorway or an American freeway. It is akin to the autopista, the other major highway class, but has fewer features and is never a toll roa ...
s'' and of the
high-speed rail High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail system that runs significantly faster than traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated tracks. While there is no single standard that applies worldwide, lines ...
network (
AVE ''Alta Velocidad Española'' (''AVE'') is a service of high-speed rail in Spain operated by Renfe, the Spanish national railway company, at speeds of up to . As of December 2021, the Spanish high-speed rail network, on part of which the AVE s ...
), which has brought major cities such as Seville and Barcelona within 2.5 hours travel time. Also important to the city's economy is Madrid-Barajas Airport, the fourth largest airport in Europe. Madrid's central location makes it a major logistical base.


Industry

As an industrial centre Madrid retains its advantages in infrastructure, as a transport hub, and as the location of headquarters of many companies. Industries based on advanced technology are acquiring much more importance here than in the rest of Spain. Industry contributed 7.5% to Madrid's value-added in 2010. However, industry has slowly declined within the city boundaries as more industry has moved outward to the periphery. Industrial Gross Value Added grew by 4.3% in the period 2003–2005, but decreased by 10% during 2008–2010. The leading industries were: paper, printing & publishing, 28.8%; energy & mining, 19.7%; vehicles & transport equipment, 12.9%; electrical and electronic, 10.3%; foodstuffs, 9.6%; clothing, footwear & textiles, 8.3%; chemical, 7.9%; industrial machinery, 7.3%. The
PSA Peugeot Citroën The PSA Group (), legally known as Peugeot S.A. (Peugeot Société Anonyme, trading as Groupe PSA; formerly known as PSA Peugeot Citroën from 1991 to 2016) was a French multinational automotive manufacturing company which produced automobiles ...
plant is located in Villaverde district.


Construction

The construction sector, contributing 6.5% to the city's economy in 2010, was a growing sector before the recession, aided by a large transport and infrastructure program. More recently the construction sector has fallen away and earned 8% less in 2009 than it had been in 2000. The decrease was particularly marked in the residential sector, where prices dropped by 25%–27% from 2007 to 2012/13 and the number of sales fell by 57%.


Tourism

Madrid is the seat of the
World Tourism Organization The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is the United Nations specialized agency entrusted with the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. Its headquarters are in Madrid, Spain. UNWTO is the leading inter ...
(UNWTO) and the (FITUR). In 2018, the city received million tourists (53.3% of them international tourists).p. 9 The biggest share of international tourists come from the United States, followed by Italy, France, United Kingdom and Germany.p. 10 As of 2018, the city has 793 hotels, hotel places and hotel rooms.p. 18 It also had, as of 2018, an estimated tourist apartments.p. 20 The most visited museum was the ''
Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía The ''Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía'' ("Queen Sofía National Museum Art Centre"; MNCARS) is Spain's national museum of 20th-century art. The museum was officially inaugurated on September 10, 1992, and is named for Queen Sofía. It ...
'', with 3.8 million visitors in the sum of its three seats in 2018. Conversely, the
Prado Museum The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to house one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from th ...
had 2.8 million visitors and the
Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum The Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum (in Spanish, the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza (), named after its founder), or simply the Thyssen, is an art museum in Madrid, Spain, located near the Prado Museum on one of the city's main boulevards. I ...
visitors.p. 32 By the late 2010s, the gentrification and the spike of tourist apartments in the city centre led to an increase in rental prices, pushing residents out of the city centre. Most of the tourist apartments in Madrid (50–54%) are located in the Centro District. In the
Sol Sol or SOL may refer to: Astronomy * The Sun Currency * SOL Project, a currency project in France * French sol, or sou * Argentine sol * Bolivian sol, the currency of Bolivia from 1827 to 1864 * Peruvian sol, introduced in 1991 * Peruvian sol ...
neighborhood (part of the latter district), 3 out of 10 homes are dedicated to tourist apartments, and 2 out of 10 are listed in
AirBnB Airbnb, Inc. ( ), based in San Francisco, California, operates an online marketplace focused on short-term homestays and experiences. The company acts as a broker and charges a commission from each booking. The company was founded in 2008 b ...
. In April 2019 the plenary of the ''ayuntamiento'' passed a plan intending to regulate this practice, seeking to greatly limit the number of tourist apartments. The normative would enforce a requirement for independent access to those apartments in and out of the street. However, after the change of government in June 2019, the new municipal administration plans to revert the regulation.


International rankings

A recent study placed Madrid 7th among 36 cities as an attractive base for business. It was placed third in terms of availability of office space, and fifth for ease of access to markets, availability of qualified staff, mobility within the city, and quality of life. Its less favourable characteristics were seen as pollution, languages spoken, and political environment. Another ranking of European cities placed Madrid 5th among 25 cities (behind
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...
,
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
,
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
and
Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...
), being rated favourably on economic factors and the labour market as well as transport and communication.


Media and entertainment

Madrid is an important film and television production hub, whose content is distributed throughout the
Spanish-speaking world Hispanophone and Hispanic refers to anything relating to the Spanish language (the Hispanosphere). In a cultural, rather than merely linguistic sense, the notion of "Hispanophone" goes further than the above definition. The Hispanic culture is th ...
and abroad. Madrid is often seen as the entry point into the European media market for
Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...
n media companies, and likewise the entry point into the Latin American markets for European companies. Madrid is the headquarters of media groups such as Radiotelevisión Española,
Atresmedia Atresmedia Corporación de Medios de Comunicación, S.A., previously Grupo Antena 3, is a Spanish media group, present in the television, radio and filmmaking industries. Significant shareholders include Grupo Planeta and Bertelsmann. On 6 Mar ...
, Mediaset España Comunicación, and
Movistar+ Movistar () is a major telecommunications provider owned by Telefónica, operating in Spain and Hispanic American countries. It is the largest provider of landline, broadband, mobile services, and pay television ( Movistar+) in Spain. Movistar ...
, which produce numerous films, television shows and series which are distributed globally on various platforms. Since 2018, the region is also home to
Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...
's Madrid Production Hub, Mediapro Studio, and numerous others such as
Viacom International Studios Paramount International Networks (PIN) is the international division of Paramount Global. The division oversees the production, broadcasting and promotion of key Paramount's brands outside of the United States. These brands include Paramount Net ...
. As of 2019, the film and television industry in Madrid employs 19,000 people (44% of people in Spain working in this industry).
RTVE The Corporación de Radio y Televisión Española, S.A. (; ), known as Radiotelevisión Española or RTVE, is the state-owned public corporation that assumed in 2007 the indirect management of the Spanish public radio and television service kno ...
, the state-owned Spanish Radio and Television Corporation is headquartered in Madrid along with all its TV and radio channels and web services ( La 1, La 2,
Clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, mea ...
,
Teledeporte Teledeporte (TDP) is a Spanish free-to-air television channel owned and operated by Televisión Española (TVE), the television division of state-owned public broadcaster Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE). It is the corporation's sports telev ...
, 24 Horas,
TVE Internacional TVE Internacional is a Spanish satellite free-to-air and pay television channel owned and operated by Televisión Española (TVE), the television division of state-owned public broadcaster Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE). It is the corporati ...
, Radio Nacional de España),
Radio Exterior de España Radio Exterior de España (REE) or simply Radio Exterior is a Spanish free-to-air radio station owned and operated by Radio Nacional de España (RNE), the radio division of state-owned public broadcaster Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE). It is ...
,
Radio Clásica Radio Clásica is a Spanish free-to-air radio station owned and operated by Radio Nacional de España (RNE), the radio division of state-owned public broadcaster Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE). It is the corporation's second radio station, a ...
. The
Atresmedia Atresmedia Corporación de Medios de Comunicación, S.A., previously Grupo Antena 3, is a Spanish media group, present in the television, radio and filmmaking industries. Significant shareholders include Grupo Planeta and Bertelsmann. On 6 Mar ...
group ( Antena 3, La Sexta,
Onda Cero Onda Cero is a Spanish radio station, a part of Atresmedia media group. It is Spain's third-largest radio station by number of listeners as of 2019. Among its programs are ''Más de Uno,'' ''Julia en la Onda,'' ''La Brújula,'' ''El Transistor,'' ...
) is headquartered in nearby
San Sebastián de los Reyes San Sebastián de los Reyes (colloquially called "Sanse") is a municipality in the Community of Madrid, Spain. Founded in 1492, it is located north of Madrid. Geography It forms an urban continuum with the neighboring Alcobendas, Transpor ...
. The television network and media production company, the largest in Spain, Mediaset España Comunicación (
Telecinco Telecinco is a Spanish free-to-air television channel operated by Mediaset España. The channel was previously known as Tele 5, because it had first begun its experimental transmissions on 10 March 1989, and a year later, it was officially laun ...
, Cuatro) maintains its headquarters in
Fuencarral-El Pardo Fuencarral-El Pardo is one of the 21 districts that form the city of Madrid, Spain. Overview Fuencarral-El Pardo is the district number 8 and consists of the following neighborhoods: El Pardo (81), Fuentelarreina (82), Peñagrande (83), Pilar (84) ...
district. Together with RTVE, Atresmedia and Mediaset account for nearly the 80% of share of generalist TV. The Spanish media conglomerate PRISA (
Cadena SER La Cadena SER (the SER Network) is Spain's premier radio network in terms of both seniority (it was created in 1924) and audience share (it had a regular listenership in 2018 of 4,139,000). The acronym SER stands for ''Sociedad Española de Radi ...
,
Los 40 Principales Los 40 (The 40, stylized as LOS40 and formerly ''Los 40 Principales'', es, Los Cuarenta) is a Top 40 music radio network and radio station brand in many Spanish-speaking countries from PRISA Radio. The station has its origins as a music show ...
,
M80 Radio M80 Radio is a radio station in Portugal (and formerly also Spain) playing music from the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. In Spain, the station began the emission on January 18, 1993 as Radio 80 Serie Oro. In 1994, the name was changed to M80. On ...
,
Cadena Dial Cadena Dial is a Spanish radio station. The station belongs to the Spanish media group PRISA. It was founded in 1990 and broadcasts exclusively pop music in Spanish (and Catalan, in the case of Catalonia). On 7 April 2017 Cadena Dial began broadc ...
) is headquartered in Gran Vía street in central Madrid. Madrid (or the wider region) hosts the main TV and radio producers and broadcasters as well as the most of the major written mass media in Spain. It is home to numerous newspapers, magazines and publications, including '' ABC'', ''
El País ''El País'' (; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. ''El País'' is based in the capital city of Madrid and it is owned by the Spanish media conglomerate PRISA. It is the second most circulated daily newspaper in Spain . ''El Pa ...
'', '' El Mundo'', '' La Razón'', '' Marca'', ''
¡Hola! ''¡Hola!'' is a weekly Spanish-language magazine specializing in celebrity news, published in Madrid, Spain, and in 15 other countries, with local editions in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Greece, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru ...
'', ''
Diario AS ''Diario AS'' () is a Spanish daily sports newspaper that concentrates particularly on football. Profile ''Diario AS'' is part of PRISA which also owns '' El País'' and '' Cinco Días''. The paper particularly covers news of the Community of ...
'', ''
El Confidencial ''El Confidencial'' is a Spanish-language general-information digital newspaper located in Spain, specializing in economic, financial and political news. It was established as an online newspaper in 2001. Its target readership is professional ...
'' and '' Cinco Días''. The Spanish international news agency EFE maintains its headquarters in Madrid since its inception in 1939. The second news agency of Spain is the privately owned Europa Press, founded and headquartered in Madrid since 1953.


Art and culture


Museums and cultural centres

Madrid is considered one of the top European destinations concerning art museums. Best known is the Golden Triangle of Art, located along the
Paseo del Prado The Paseo del Prado is one of the main boulevards in Madrid, Spain. It runs north–south between the Plaza de Cibeles and the Plaza del Emperador Carlos V (also known as Plaza de Atocha), with the Plaza de Cánovas del Castillo (the loca ...
and comprising three major museums: the
Prado Museum The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to house one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from th ...
, the
Reina Sofía Museum Reina (the Spanish word for queen) or La Reina may refer to: Geography * Reina, Badajoz, a municipality in the province of Badajoz, Extremadura, Spain * Reina, Estonia, a village in Saaremaa Parish, Saare County, Estonia * La Reina, a commune ...
, and the Thyssen Bornemisza Museum. The Prado Museum (''Museo del Prado'') is a museum and art gallery that features one of the world's finest collections of European art, from the 12th century to the early 19th century, based on the former
Spanish Royal Collection The Spanish royal collection of art was almost entirely built up by the monarchs of the Habsburg family who ruled Spain from 1516 to 1700, and then the Bourbons (1700–1868, with a brief interruption). They included a number of kings with a seri ...
. It has the best collection of artworks by
Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 174616 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, and e ...
, Velázquez,
El Greco Domḗnikos Theotokópoulos ( el, Δομήνικος Θεοτοκόπουλος ; 1 October 1541 7 April 1614), most widely known as El Greco ("The Greek"), was a Greek painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. "El ...
,
Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...
,
Titian Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italians, Italian (Republic of Venice, Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school (art), ...
,
Hieronymus Bosch Hieronymus Bosch (, ; born Jheronimus van Aken ;  – 9 August 1516) was a Dutch/ Netherlandish painter from Brabant. He is one of the most notable representatives of the Early Netherlandish painting school. His work, generally oil on o ...
,
José de Ribera Jusepe de Ribera (1591 – 1652) was a painter and printmaker, who along with Francisco de Zurbarán, Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, and the singular Diego Velázquez, are regarded as the major artists of Spanish Baroque painting. Referring to ...
, and Patinir as well as works by
Rogier van der Weyden Rogier van der Weyden () or Roger de la Pasture (1399 or 140018 June 1464) was an early Netherlandish painter whose surviving works consist mainly of religious triptychs, altarpieces, and commissioned single and diptych portraits. He was highly ...
, Raphael Sanzio,
Tintoretto Tintoretto ( , , ; born Jacopo Robusti; late September or early October 1518Bernari and de Vecchi 1970, p. 83.31 May 1594) was an Italian painter identified with the Venetian school. His contemporaries both admired and criticized the speed wit ...
, Veronese,
Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of h ...
,
Van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Brabantian Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Southern Netherlands and Italy. The seventh ...
,
Albrecht Dürer Albrecht Dürer (; ; hu, Ajtósi Adalbert; 21 May 1471 – 6 April 1528),Müller, Peter O. (1993) ''Substantiv-Derivation in Den Schriften Albrecht Dürers'', Walter de Gruyter. . sometimes spelled in English as Durer (without an umlaut) or Due ...
,
Claude Lorrain Claude Lorrain (; born Claude Gellée , called ''le Lorrain'' in French; traditionally just Claude in English; c. 1600 – 23 November 1682) was a French painter, draughtsman and etcher of the Baroque era. He spent most of his life in It ...
, Murillo, and Zurbarán, among others. Some of the standout works exhibited at the museum include ''
Las Meninas ''Las Meninas'' (; ) is a 1656 painting in the Museo del Prado in Madrid, by Diego Velázquez, the leading artist of the Spanish Golden Age. It has become one of the most widely analyzed works in Western painting, due to the way its complex an ...
'', ''
La maja vestida ''La maja vestida'' (English translation: ''The Clothed Maja'') is an oil painting on canvas created between 1800 and 1807 by the Spanish Romantic painter and printmaker Francisco Goya. It is a clothed version of the earlier ''La maja desnuda'', ...
'', ''
La maja desnuda ''The Naked Maja'' or ''The Nude Maja'' ( es, La maja desnuda ) is an oil on canvas painting made around 1797–1800 by the Spanish artist Francisco de Goya, and is now in the Museo del Prado in Madrid. It portrays a nude woman reclining on a ...
'', '' The Garden of Earthly Delights'', '' The Immaculate Conception'' and '' The Judgement of Paris''. The Reina Sofía National Art Museum (''Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía''; MNCARS) is Madrid's national museum of
20th-century art Twentieth-century art—and what it became as modern art—began with modernism in the late nineteenth century. Overview Nineteenth-century movements of Post-Impressionism (Les Nabis), Art Nouveau and Symbolism led to the first twentieth-century ...
and houses
Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...
's 1937 anti-war masterpiece, ''
Guernica Guernica (, ), official name (reflecting the Basque language) Gernika (), is a town in the province of Biscay, in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, Spain. The town of Guernica is one part (along with neighbouring Lumo) of the m ...
''. Other highlights of the museum, which is mainly dedicated to Spanish art, include excellent collections of Spain's greatest 20th-century masters including
Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (; ; ; 11 May 190423 January 1989) was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarr ...
,
Joan Miró Joan Miró i Ferrà ( , , ; 20 April 1893 – 25 December 1983) was a Catalan painter, sculptor and ceramicist born in Barcelona. A museum dedicated to his work, the Fundació Joan Miró, was established in his native city of Barcelona ...
, Picasso,
Juan Gris José Victoriano González-Pérez (23 March 1887 – 11 May 1927), better known as Juan Gris (; ), was a Spanish painter born in Madrid who lived and worked in France for most of his active period. Closely connected to the innovative artistic ge ...
, and Julio González. The Reina Sofía also hosts a free-access art library. The Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum (''Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza'') is an art museum that fills the historical gaps in its counterparts' collections: in the Prado's case, this includes Italian primitives and works from the
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...
,
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...
, and German schools, while in the case of the Reina Sofía, the Thyssen-Bornemisza collection, once the second largest private collection in the world after the British
Royal Collection The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King Charles III and overseen by the ...
,Kandell, Jonathan (28 April 2002)
"Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza, Industrialist Who Built Fabled Art Collection, Dies at 81"
. ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
''. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
includes
Impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passag ...
s,
Expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radi ...
s, and European and American paintings from the second half of the 20th century, with over 1,600 paintings. The National Archaeological Museum of Madrid (''Museo Arqueológico Nacional'') shows archaeological finds from
Prehistory Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The us ...
to the 19th century (including Roman mosaics, Greek ceramics, Islamic art and Romanesque art), especially from the Iberian Peninsula, distributed over three floors. An iconic item in the museum is the '' Lady of Elche'', an Iberian bust from the 4th century BC. Other major pieces include the ''
Lady of Baza The ''Lady of Baza'' (''la Dama de Baza'') is a famous example of Iberian sculpture by the Bastetani. It is a limestone female figure with traces of painted detail in a stuccoed surface that was found on July 22, 1971, by Francisco José Pre ...
'', the '' Lady of Cerro de los Santos'', the ''
Lady of Ibiza The Lady of Ibiza is a ceramic figure, 47 cm tall, that dates from the third century BC. It is on display in the National Archaeological Museum of Spain in Madrid. The figure was found in the necropolis of Puig des Molins on the island of Ibiza i ...
'', the ''
Bicha of Balazote The Bicha of Balazote is an Iberian sculpture that was found in the borough of Balazote in Albacete province ( Castile-La Mancha), Spain. Carlos Fuentes has called it the "Beast of Balazote." The sculpture has been dated to the 6th century BCE ...
'', the ''
Treasure of Guarrazar The Treasure of Guarrazar, Guadamur, Province of Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain, is an archeological find composed of twenty-six votive crowns and gold crosses that had originally been offered to the Roman Catholic Church by the Kings ...
'', the '' Pyxis of Zamora'', the '' Mausoleum of Pozo Moro'' or a
napier's bones Napier's bones is a manually-operated calculating device created by John Napier of Merchiston, Scotland for the calculation of products and quotients of numbers. The method was based on lattice multiplication, and also called ''rabdology'', a wor ...
. In addition, the museum has a reproduction of the polychromatic paintings in the Altamira Cave. The
Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando The Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando (RABASF; ), located on the Calle de Alcalá in the heart of Madrid, currently functions as a museum and gallery. A public law corporation, it is integrated together with other Spanish royal acade ...
(''Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando'') houses a fine art collection of paintings ranging the 15th to 20th centuries. The academy is also the headquarters of the Madrid Academy of Art.
CaixaForum Madrid CaixaForum Madrid is a cultural center in Madrid, Spain. Located in Paseo del Prado in a former power station, it is owned by the not-for-profit banking foundation "la Caixa". The art center opened its doors in 2008 and it hosts temporary art ex ...
is a post-modern art gallery in the centre of Madrid, next to the Prado Museum. The
Royal Palace of Madrid The Royal Palace of Madrid ( es, Palacio Real de Madrid) is the official residence of the Spanish royal family at the city of Madrid, although now used only for state ceremonies. The palace has of floor space and contains 3,418 rooms. It is the ...
, a massive building characterised by its luxurious rooms, houses rich collections of armours and weapons, as well as the most comprehensive collection of
Stradivarius A Stradivarius is one of the violins, violas, cellos and other string instruments built by members of the Italian family Stradivari, particularly Antonio Stradivari (Latin: Antonius Stradivarius), during the 17th and 18th centuries. They are c ...
in the world. The Museo de las Colecciones Reales is a future museum intended to host the most outstanding pieces of the Royal Collections part of the
Patrimonio Nacional Patrimonio Nacional ( en, National Heritage) is a Spanish autonomous agency, under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Presidency, that administers the sites owned by the Spanish State and used by the Monarch and the Spanish Royal F ...
. Located next to the Royal Palace and the Almudena, Patrimonio Nacional has tentatively scheduled its opening for 2021. The Museum of the Americas (''Museo de América'') is a national museum that holds artistic, archaeological, and ethnographic collections from the
Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America, North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. ...
, ranging from the
Paleolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός '' palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...
period to the present day. Other notable museums include the National Museum of Natural Sciences (the Spain's national museum of natural history), the Naval Museum, the
Convent of Las Descalzas Reales The Convent of Las Descalzas Reales ( es, Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales) is a royal monastery situated in Madrid, Spain, administered by the Patrimonio Nacional. History The ''Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales'', literally the "Monaste ...
(with many works of Renaissance and Baroque art, and Brussels tapestries inspired by paintings of Rubens), the Museum of Lázaro Galdiano (housing a collection specialising in decorative arts, featuring a collection of weapons that features the sword of Pope
Innocent VIII Pope Innocent VIII ( la, Innocentius VIII; it, Innocenzo VIII; 1432 – 25 July 1492), born Giovanni Battista Cybo (or Cibo), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1484 to his death in July 1492. Son of t ...
), the National Museum of Decorative Arts, the National Museum of Romanticism (focused on 19th century Romanticism), the Museum Cerralbo, the National Museum of Anthropology (featuring as highlight a
Guanche Guanche may refer to: *Guanches, the indigenous people of the Canary Islands *Guanche language, an extinct Berber language, spoken by the Guanches until the 16th or 17th century *''Conus guanche ''Conus guanche'' is a species of sea snail, a ma ...
mummy from
Tenerife Tenerife (; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands. It is home to 43% of the total population of the Archipelago, archipelago. With a land area of and a population of 978,100 inhabitant ...
), the
Sorolla Museum The Museum Sorolla (Spanish: ''Museo Sorolla'') is a public museum located in Madrid, Spain. It features work by the artist Joaquín Sorolla, as well as by members of his family such as his daughter Elena. The building was originally the artist ...
(focused in the namesake Valencian Impressionist painter, also including sculptures by
Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor, generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a uniqu ...
, part of Sorolla's personal effects), or the History Museum of Madrid (housing pieces related to the local history of Madrid), the Wax Museum of Madrid, the
Railway Museum A railway museum is a museum that explores the history of all aspects of rail related transportation, including: locomotives ( steam, diesel, and electric), railway cars, trams, and railway signalling equipment. They may also operate historic ...
(located in the building that was once the Delicias Station). Major cultural centres in the city include the Fine Arts Circle (one of Madrid's oldest arts centres and one of the most important private cultural centres in Europe, hosting exhibitions, shows, film screenings, conferences and workshops), the Conde Duque cultural centre or the
Matadero Madrid Matadero Madrid is the site of a former slaughterhouse, the El Matadero y Mercado Municipal de Ganados (English: Municipal Slaughterhouse and Cattle Market) in the Arganzuela district of Madrid. Today, it is a contemporary arts centre. History ...
, a cultural complex (formerly an abattoir) located by the river Manzanares. The Matadero, created in 2006 with the aim of "promoting research, production, learning, and diffusion of creative works and contemporary thought in all their manifestations", is considered the third most valued cultural institution in Madrid among art professionals.


Literature

Madrid has been one of the great centres of Spanish literature. Some of the most distinguished writers of the Spanish Golden Century were born in Madrid, including
Lope de Vega Félix Lope de Vega y Carpio ( , ; 25 November 156227 August 1635) was a Spanish playwright, poet, and novelist. He was one of the key figures in the Spanish Golden Age of Baroque literature. His reputation in the world of Spanish literatur ...
(author of '' Fuenteovejuna'' and ''
The Dog in the Manger The story and metaphor of The Dog in the Manger derives from an old Greek fable which has been transmitted in several different versions. Interpreted variously over the centuries, the metaphor is now used to speak of one who spitefully prevents o ...
''), who reformed the Spanish theatre, a project continued by Calderon de la Barca (author of '' Life is a Dream'').
Francisco de Quevedo Francisco Gómez de Quevedo y Santibáñez Villegas, Knight of the Order of Santiago (; 14 September 1580 – 8 September 1645) was a Spanish nobleman, politician and writer of the Baroque era. Along with his lifelong rival, Luis de Góngora ...
, who criticised the Spanish society of his day, and author of ''
El Buscón ''El Buscón'' (full title ''Historia de la vida del Buscón, llamado Don Pablos, ejemplo de vagamundos y espejo de tacaños'' (literally: History of the life of the Swindler, called Don Pablos, model for hobos and mirror of misers); translated as ...
'', and Tirso de Molina, who created the character
Don Juan Don Juan (), also known as Don Giovanni ( Italian), is a legendary, fictional Spanish libertine who devotes his life to seducing women. Famous versions of the story include a 17th-century play, ''El burlador de Sevilla y convidado de piedra'' ...
, were born in Madrid.
Cervantes Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (; 29 September 1547 (assumed) – 22 April 1616 Old Style and New Style dates, NS) was an Early Modern Spanish writer widely regarded as the greatest writer in the Spanish language and one of the world's pre-emin ...
and Góngora also lived in the city, although they were not born there. The Madrid homes of Lope de Vega, Quevedo, Gongora, and Cervantes still exist, and they are all in the Barrio de las Letras (Literary Neighborhood). Other writers born in Madrid in later centuries have been Leandro Fernandez de Moratín, Mariano José de Larra, Jose de Echegaray (
Nobel Prize in Literature ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , caption = , awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature , presenter = Swedish Academy , holder = Annie Ernaux (2022) , location = Stockholm, Sweden , year = 1901 , ...
),
Ramón Gómez de la Serna Ramón Gómez de la Serna y Puig (3 July 1888 in Madrid – 13 January 1963 in Buenos Aires) was a Spanish writer, dramatist and avant-garde agitator. He strongly influenced surrealist film maker Luis Buñuel. Ramón Gómez de la Serna was esp ...
, Dámaso Alonso, Enrique Jardiel Poncela and
Pedro Salinas Pedro Salinas y Serrano (27 November 1891 – 4 December 1951) was a Spanish poet, a member of the Generation of '27, as well as a university teacher, scholar and literary critic. In 1937, he delivered the Turnbull lectures at Johns Hopkins ...
. The "Barrio de las Letras" owes its name to the intense literary activity taking place there during the 16th and 17th centuries. Some of the most prominent writers of the
Spanish Golden Age The Spanish Golden Age ( es, Siglo de Oro, links=no , "Golden Century") is a period of flourishing in arts and literature in Spain, coinciding with the political rise of the Spanish Empire under the Catholic Monarchs of Spain and the Spanish Ha ...
lived here, such as
Lope de Vega Félix Lope de Vega y Carpio ( , ; 25 November 156227 August 1635) was a Spanish playwright, poet, and novelist. He was one of the key figures in the Spanish Golden Age of Baroque literature. His reputation in the world of Spanish literatur ...
, Quevedo, and Góngora, and it contained the Cruz and Príncipe Theatres, two of the most important in Spain. At 87 Calle de Atocha, on the northern end of the neighborhood, was the printing house of
Juan de la Cuesta Juan de la Cuesta (?-1627) was a Spanish printer known for printing (not publishing) the first editions of ''Don Quixote de la Mancha'' (1605) and the ''Novelas ejemplares'' (1613), by Miguel de Cervantes, as well as the works of other leading figu ...
, where the first edition of
Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of West ...
was typeset and printed in 1604. Most of the literary routes are articulated along the Barrio de las Letras, where you can find scenes from novels of the Siglo de Oro and more recent works like "
Bohemian Lights ''Bohemian Lights'', or ''Luces de Bohemia'' in the original Spanish, is a play written by Ramón del Valle-Inclán, published in 1924. The central character is Max Estrella, a struggling poet afflicted by blindness due to developing syphilis. ...
". Although born in
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Las Palmas (, ; ), officially Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, is a Spanish city and capital of Gran Canaria, in the Canary Islands, on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital (jointly with Santa Cruz de Tenerife), the most populous city in the auto ...
, realist writer
Benito Pérez Galdós Benito Pérez Galdós (May 10, 1843 – January 4, 1920) was a Spanish realist novelist. He was the leading literary figure in 19th-century Spain, and some scholars consider him second only to Miguel de Cervantes in stature as a Spanish no ...
made Madrid the setting for many of his stories; there is a giidebook to the Madrid of Galdós (''Madrid galdosiano''). Madrid is home to the
Real Academia Española The Royal Spanish Academy ( es, Real Academia Española, generally abbreviated as RAE) is Spain's official royal institution with a mission to ensure the stability of the Spanish language. It is based in Madrid, Spain, and is affiliated with ...
, the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language, which governs, with statutory authority, over Spanish, preparing, publishing, and updating authoritative reference works on it. The academy's motto (''lema'', in Spanish) states its purpose: it cleans the language, stabilizes it, and gives it brilliance ("Limpia, fija y da resplendor"). Madrid is also home to another international cultural institution, the
Instituto Cervantes Instituto Cervantes (the Cervantes Institute) is a worldwide nonprofit organization created by the Spanish government in 1991. It is named after Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616), the author of ''Don Quixote'' and perhaps the most important figur ...
, whose task is the promotion and teaching of the
Spanish language Spanish ( or , Castilian) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from colloquial Latin spoken on the Iberian peninsula. Today, it is a global language with more than 500 million native speakers, mainly in the ...
as well as the dissemination of the culture of
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...
and
Hispanic America The region known as Hispanic America (in Spanish called ''Hispanoamérica'' or ''América Hispana'') and historically as Spanish America (''América Española'') is the portion of the Americas comprising the Spanish-speaking countries of North, ...
. The
National Library of Spain National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...
is the largest major public library in Spain. The library's collection consists of more than 26,000,000 items, including 15,000,000 books and other printed materials, 30,000 manuscripts, 143,000 newspapers and serials, 4,500,000 graphic materials, 510,000 music scores, 500,000 maps, 600,000 sound recording, 90,000 audiovisuals, 90,000 electronic documents, more than 500,000 microforms, etc.


Cuisine

The Madrilenian cuisine has received plenty of influences from other regions of Spain and its own identity actually relies in its ability to assimilate elements from the immigration. The '' cocido madrileño'', a
chickpea The chickpea or chick pea (''Cicer arietinum'') is an annual legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. Its different types are variously known as gram" or Bengal gram, garbanzo or garbanzo bean, or Egyptian pea. Chickpea seeds are h ...
-based
stew A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. A stew needs to have raw ingredients added to the gravy. Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables a ...
, is one of the most emblematic dishes of the Madrilenian cuisine. The ' is another traditional winter specialty, usually made of cattle
tripe Tripe is a type of edible lining from the stomachs of various farm animals. Most tripe is from cattle, pigs and sheep. Types of tripe Beef tripe Beef tripe is made from the muscle wall (the interior mucosal lining is removed) of a cow's ...
s. Other
offal Offal (), also called variety meats, pluck or organ meats, is the organs of a butchered animal. The word does not refer to a particular list of edible organs, which varies by culture and region, but usually excludes muscle. Offal may also refe ...
dishes typical in the city include the ' or grilled pig's ear. Fried
squid True squid are molluscs with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight arms, and two tentacles in the superorder Decapodiformes, though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also called squid despite not strictly fittin ...
has become a culinary specialty in Madrid, often consumed in sandwich as ''bocata de calamares''. Other generic dishes commonly accepted as part of the Madrilenian cuisine include the ''
potaje Pottage or potage (, ; ) is a term for a thick soup or stew made by boiling vegetables, grains, and, if available, meat or fish. It was a staple food for many centuries. The word ''pottage'' comes from the same Old French root as ''potage'', wh ...
'', the ''
sopa de ajo Garlic soup is a type of soup using garlic as a main ingredient. In Spanish cuisine, ''sopa de ajo'' (soup of garlic) is a traditional garlic soup made with bread and egg poached in chicken broth, and laced with garlic and sherry. By countr ...
'' (Garlic soup), the
Spanish omelette Spanish omelette or Spanish tortilla is a traditional dish from Spain. Celebrated as a national dish by Spaniards, it is an essential part of the Spanish cuisine. It is an omelette made with eggs and potatoes, optionally including onion. It is o ...
, the ' (
bream Bream ( ) are species of freshwater and marine fish belonging to a variety of genera including '' Abramis'' (e.g., ''A. brama'', the common bream), '' Acanthopagrus'', ''Argyrops'', '' Blicca'', '' Brama'', '' Chilotilapia'', ''Etelis'', '' L ...
), ' (
snail A snail is, in loose terms, a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class ...
s, sp. ''
Cornu aspersum ''Cornu aspersum'' (syn. ''Cryptomphalus aspersus''), known by the common name garden snail, is a species of land snail in the family Helicidae, which includes some of the most familiar land snails. Of all terrestrial molluscs, this species may ...
'') or the soldaditos de Pavía, the '' patatas bravas'' (consumed as snack in bars) or the ''gallina en '' (hen or chicken cooked with the yolk of hard-boiled eggs and
almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genu ...
s) to name a few. Traditional desserts include '' torrijas'' (a variant of French toast consumed in the Easter) and '.


Nightlife

Madrid is an international hub of highly active and diverse
nightlife Nightlife is a collective term for entertainment that is available and generally more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning. It includes pubs, bars, nightclubs, parties, live music, concerts, cabarets, theatre, ...
with bars, dance bars and
nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gen ...
s staying open well past midnight. Madrid is reputed to have a "vibrant
nightlife Nightlife is a collective term for entertainment that is available and generally more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning. It includes pubs, bars, nightclubs, parties, live music, concerts, cabarets, theatre, ...
". Some of the highlight bustling locations include the surroundings of the Plaza de Santa Ana,
Malasaña Malasaña is an area in the centre of Madrid, Spain. It does not correspond to any administrative division, but it is often conflated with Universidad, the wider administrative neighborhood on which Malasaña is located. The webpage providi ...
and La Latina (particularly near the ). It is one of the city's main attractions with tapas bars, cocktail bars, clubs, jazz lounges, live music venues and flamenco theatres. Most nightclubs liven up by 1:30 .and stay open until at least 6 . Nightlife flourished in the 1980s while Madrid's mayor
Enrique Tierno Galván Enrique Tierno Galván (Madrid, 8 February 1918 – Madrid, 19 January 1986) was a Spanish politician, sociologist, lawyer and essayist, best known for being the Mayor of Madrid from 1979 to 1986, at the beginning of the new period of Spanish de ...
(
PSOE The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( es, Partido Socialista Obrero Español ; PSOE ) is a social-democraticThe PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources: * * * * political party in Spain. The PSOE has been in gov ...
) was in office, nurturing the cultural-musical movement known as ''
La Movida LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...
''. Nowadays, the
Malasaña Malasaña is an area in the centre of Madrid, Spain. It does not correspond to any administrative division, but it is often conflated with Universidad, the wider administrative neighborhood on which Malasaña is located. The webpage providi ...
area is known for its
alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...
scene. The area of
Chueca Chueca is an area of central Madrid, named after its main square, Plaza de Chueca. It is known as Madrid's gay neighborhood. Plaza de Chueca was named after Spanish composer and author Federico Chueca. It is located in the administrative ward ...
has also become a hot spot in the Madrilenian nightlife, especially for the gay population. Chueca is known as gay quarter, comparable to The Castro district in San Francisco.


Bohemian culture

The city has venues for performing alternative art and expressive art. They are mostly located in the centre of the city, including in Ópera, Antón Martín,
Chueca Chueca is an area of central Madrid, named after its main square, Plaza de Chueca. It is known as Madrid's gay neighborhood. Plaza de Chueca was named after Spanish composer and author Federico Chueca. It is located in the administrative ward ...
and
Malasaña Malasaña is an area in the centre of Madrid, Spain. It does not correspond to any administrative division, but it is often conflated with Universidad, the wider administrative neighborhood on which Malasaña is located. The webpage providi ...
. There are also several festivals in Madrid, including the Festival of Alternative Art, the Festival of the Alternative Scene. The neighbourhood of
Malasaña Malasaña is an area in the centre of Madrid, Spain. It does not correspond to any administrative division, but it is often conflated with Universidad, the wider administrative neighborhood on which Malasaña is located. The webpage providi ...
, as well as Antón Martín and
Lavapiés Lavapiés is a historic neighbourhood in the city of Madrid, Spain. It is located in the administrative ward (barrio) of Embajadores in the downtown Centro District, southwest of neighbouring neighbourhood La Latina. The name literally means ...
, hosts several bohemian cafés/galleries. These cafés are typified with period or retro furniture or furniture found on the street, a colourful, nontraditional atmosphere inside, and usually art displayed each month by a new artist, often for sale. Cafés include the retro café ''Lolina'' and bohemian cafés ''La Ida'', ''La Paca'' and ''Café de la Luz'' in Malasaña, ''La Piola'' in Huertas and ''Café Olmo'' and ''Aguardiente'' in Lavapiés. In the neighbourhood of Lavapiés, there are also "hidden houses", which are illegal bars or abandoned spaces where concerts, poetry readings and the famous Spanish ''
botellón Botellón (; Spanish for "big bottle") is a Spanish activity when people congregate in public areas to socialize while drinking alcohol. The activity is popular among teenagers and young adults partly in response to rising drink prices at bars o ...
'' (a street party or gathering that is now illegal but rarely stopped).


Classical music and opera

The
Auditorio Nacional de Música The Auditorio Nacional de Música (''National Auditorium of Music'') is a complex of concert venues located in Madrid, Spain and the main concert hall in the Madrid metropolitan area. It comprises two main concert rooms: a symphonic hall and a cham ...
is the main venue for classical music concerts in Madrid. It is home to the Spanish National Orchestra, the Chamartín Symphony Orchestra and the venue for the symphonic concerts of the
Community of Madrid Orchestra The Community of Madrid Orchestra ( es, Orquesta de la Comunidad de Madrid), founded in 1987, is a symphony orchestra in Madrid, Spain. It is the resident orchestra at the Teatro de la Zarzuela in Madrid and performs its concert programs at the Au ...
and the
Madrid Symphony Orchestra Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
. It is also the principal venue for orchestras on tour playing in Madrid. The
Teatro Real The Teatro Real (Royal Theatre) is an opera house in Madrid, Spain. Located at the Plaza de Oriente, opposite the Royal Palace, and known colloquially as ''El Real'', it is considered the top institution of the performing and musical arts in the ...
is the main opera house in Madrid, located just in front of the
Royal Palace This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent. Africa * Abdin Palace, Cairo * Al-Gawhara Palace, Cairo * Koubbeh Palace, Cairo * Tahra Palace, Cairo * Menelik Palace * Jubilee Palace * Guenete Leul Palace * Imperial Palace- ...
, and its resident orchestra is the
Madrid Symphony Orchestra Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
. The theatre stages around seventeen opera titles (both own productions and co-productions with other major European opera houses) per year, as well as two or three major ballets and several recitals. The Teatro de la Zarzuela is mainly devoted to
Zarzuela () is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular songs, as well as dance. The etymology of the name is uncertain, but some propose it may derive from the name of ...
(the Spanish traditional musical theatre genre), as well as
operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its ...
and
recital A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide var ...
s. The resident orchestra of the theatre is the
Community of Madrid Orchestra The Community of Madrid Orchestra ( es, Orquesta de la Comunidad de Madrid), founded in 1987, is a symphony orchestra in Madrid, Spain. It is the resident orchestra at the Teatro de la Zarzuela in Madrid and performs its concert programs at the Au ...
. The
Teatro Monumental The Teatro Monumental (Monumental Theatre) is a concert hall in Madrid. The theatre, designed by Teodoro Anasagasti Algan, was built between 1922 and 1923 as a movie theatre (''Teatro Cinema Monumental'') and later was transformed to house concert ...
is the concert venue of the RTVE Symphony Orchestra. Other concert venues for classical music are the Fundación Joan March and the Auditorio 400, devoted to contemporary music.


Feasts and festivals


San Isidro

The local feast par excellence is the Day of
Isidore the Laborer Isidore the Labourer, also known as Isidore the Farmer ( es, San Isidro Labrador) (c. 1070 – May 15, 1130), was a Spanish farmworker known for his piety toward the poor and animals. He is the Catholic patron saint of farmers and of Madrid, ...
(''San Isidro Labrador''), the patron Saint of Madrid, celebrated on 15 May. It is a
public holiday A public holiday, national holiday, or legal holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year. Sovereign nations and territories observe holidays based on events of significance to their history ...
. According to tradition, Isidro was a farmworker and well manufacturer born in Madrid in the late 11th century, who lived a pious life and whose corpse was reportedly found to be
incorrupt Incorruptibility is a Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox belief that divine intervention allows some human bodies (specifically saints and beati) to completely or partially avoid the normal process of decomposition after death as a sign of thei ...
in 1212. Already very popular among the madrilenian people, as Madrid became the capital of the Hispanic Monarchy in 1561 the city council pulled efforts to promote his canonization; the process started in 1562. Isidro was beatified in 1619 and the feast day set on 15 May (he was finally canonized in 1622). On 15 May the Madrilenian people gather around the and the (on the right-bank of the Manzanares) often dressed with checkered caps (') and kerchiefs (''safos'') characteristic of the
chulapo ''Castizo''Pronunciation in Latin American Spanish: is a racial category used in 18th-century Colonial Mexico to refer to people who were three-quarters Spanish by descent and one-quarter Amerindian. The feminine form of the word is ''castiza''. ...
s and chulapas, dancing ''
chotis The schottische is a partnered country dance that apparently originated in Bohemia. It was popular in Victorian era ballrooms as a part of the Bohemian folk-dance craze and left its traces in folk music of countries such as Argentina (" chotis"Spa ...
'' and ''
pasodoble Pasodoble ( Spanish: ''double step'') is a fast-paced Spanish military march used by infantry troops. Its speed allowed troops to give 120 steps per minute (double the average of a regular unit, hence its name). This military march gave rise ...
s'', eating ''rosquillas'' and ''barquillos''.


LGBT pride

The Madrilenian LGBT Pride has grown to become the event bringing the most people together in the city each year as well as one of the most important Pride celebrations worldwide. Madrid's Pride Parade began in 1977, in the Chueca neighbourhood, which also marked the beginning of the gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual rights movement after being repressed for forty years in a dictatorship. This claiming of LGBT rights has allowed the Pride Parade in Madrid to grow year after year, becoming one of the best in the world. In 2007, this was recognised by the European Pride Owners Association (EPOA) when Madrid hosted Europride, the Official European Pride Parade. It was hailed by the President of the EPOA as "the best Europride in history". In 2017, Madrid celebrated the 40th anniversary of their first Pride Parade by hosting the WorldPride Madrid 2017. Numerous conferences, seminars and workshops as well as cultural and sports activities took place at the festival, the event being a "kids and family pride" and a source of education. More than one million people attended the pride's central march. The main purpose of the celebration was presenting Madrid and the Spanish society in general as a multicultural, diverse, and tolerant community. The 2018
Madrid Pride Madrid Pride, popularly known in Spanish as the Orgullo Gay de Madrid and its acronym MADO, is the annual LGBT pride festival hosted at Chueca neighbourhood in the centre of Madrid, during the weekend immediately after June 28, International Da ...
roughly had 1.5 million participants.p. 34 Since Spain legalised
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
in July 2005, Madrid has become one of the largest hot spots for LGBT culture. With about 500 businesses aimed toward the LGBT community, Madrid has become a "Gateway of Diversity".


Other

Despite often being labelled as "having no tradition" by foreigners, the
Carnival Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival t ...
was popular in Madrid already in the 16th century. However, during the Francoist dictatorship the carnival was under government ban and the feasts suffered a big blow. It has been slowly recovering since then. Other signalled days include the regional day (2 May) commemorating the
Dos de Mayo Uprising On the 2 and 3 May 1808 the Dos de Mayo or Second of May Uprising of 1808 took place in Madrid, Spain. It was a rebellion by civilians alongside some military against the occupation of the city by French troops, provoking a heavy-hand repress ...
(a public holiday), the feasts of San Antonio de la Florida (13 June), the feast of the Virgen de la Paloma (circa 15 August) or the day of the co-patron of Madrid, the Virgin of Almudena (9 November), although the latter's celebrations are rather religious in nature. The most important musical event in the city is the Mad Cool festival; created in 2016, it reached an attendance of during the three-day long schedule of the 2018 edition.p. 33


Bullfighting

Madrid hosts the largest ''plaza de toros'' (bullring) in Spain,
Las Ventas The plaza de toros de Las Ventas, known simply as Las Ventas, is the largest bullfighting ring in Spain, located in the Guindalera quarter of the Salamanca district of Madrid. It was inaugurated on June 17, 1931. Its seating capacity of 23,798, m ...
, established in 1929. Las Ventas is considered by many to be the world centre of bullfighting and has a
seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile tha ...
of almost 25,000. Madrid's
bullfighting Bullfighting is a physical contest that involves a bullfighter attempting to subdue, immobilize, or kill a bull, usually according to a set of rules, guidelines, or cultural expectations. There are several variations, including some forms w ...
season begins in March and ends in October. Bullfights are held every day during the festivities of San Isidro (Madrid's
patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...
) from mid May to early June, and every Sunday, and
public holiday A public holiday, national holiday, or legal holiday is a holiday generally established by law and is usually a non-working day during the year. Sovereign nations and territories observe holidays based on events of significance to their history ...
, the rest of the season. The style of the plaza is
Neo-Mudéjar Neo-Mudéjar is a type of Moorish Revival architecture practised in the Iberian Peninsula and to a far lesser extent in Ibero-America. This architectural movement emerged as a revival of Mudéjar style. It was an architectural trend of the late ...
. Las Ventas also hosts music concerts and other events outside of the bullfighting season. There is great controversy in Madrid with bullfighting.


Sport


Football

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
, founded in 1902, compete in
La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Banco Santander, Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaL ...
and play their home games at the
Santiago Bernabéu Stadium The Santiago Bernabéu Stadium ( es, Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, ) is a football stadium in Madrid, Spain. With a current seating capacity of 81,044, it has been the home stadium of Real Madrid since its completion in 1947. It is the second-larg ...
. The club is one of the most widely supported teams in the world and their supporters are referred to as ''Madridistas'' or ''Merengues'' (Meringues). Real's supporters in Madrid are mostly upper-class citizens and conservatives. The club was selected as the best club of the 20th century, being the fifth most valuable sports club in the world and the most successful Spanish football club with a total of 99 official titles (this includes a record 14 European Cups and a record 35 La Ligas).
Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based i ...
, founded in 1903, also compete in La Liga and play their home games at the
Metropolitano Stadium Metropolitano Stadium (Spanish: ''Estadio Metropolitano''), also referred to as Cívitas Metropolitano for sponsorship reasons, is a stadium in Madrid, Spain. It has been the home stadium of Atlético Madrid since the 2017–18 season. It is lo ...
. The club is well-supported in the city, having the third national fan base in Spain and their supporters are referred to as ''Atléticos'' or ''Colchoneros'' (The Mattressers). Atlético draws its support mostly from working class citizens. The club is considered an elite European team, having won three
UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...
titles and reached three European Cup finals. Domestically, Atletico have won eleven league titles and ten
Copa del Rey The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footb ...
s.
Rayo Vallecano Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D. (), often abbreviated to Rayo (Spanish for "thunderbolt"), is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas. Rayo was founded on 29 May 1924, and currently compete in La Li ...
are the third most important football team of the city, based in the
Vallecas Vallecas was a municipality of Spain that disappeared as such in 1950, when its annexation to the Municipality of Madrid was effectuated. Nowadays it is a large neighborhood of Madrid composed of two districts: Puente de Vallecas (population ...
neighborhood. They currently compete in La Liga, having secured promotion in 2021. The club's fans tend to be very left-wing and are known as '' Bucaneers''. Madrid hosted five European Cup/Champions League finals, four at the Santiago Bernabéu, and the 2019 final at the Metropolitano. The Bernabéu also hosted the Euro 1964 Final (which
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...
won) and
1982 FIFA World Cup Final The 1982 FIFA World Cup Final was a football match contested between Italy and West Germany. It was the final match of the 1982 FIFA World Cup tournament and was played on 11 July 1982 at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in the Spanish capital and ...
.


Basketball

Real Madrid Baloncesto Real Madrid Baloncesto (English: Real Madrid Basketball) is a Spanish professional basketball team that was founded in 1931, as a division of the Real Madrid CF multi sports club. They play domestically in the Liga ACB, and internationally in ...
, founded in 1931, compete in
Liga ACB The Liga ACB, known as Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system. Administrated by the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB), Liga ACB is contested by 18 teams, ...
and play their home games at the Palacio de Deportes (WiZink Center). Real Madrid's basketball section, similarly to its football team, is the most successful team in Europe, with a record 10 EuroLeague titles. Domestically, they have clinched a record 36 league titles and a record 28
Copa del Rey The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footb ...
s. Club Baloncesto Estudiantes, founded in 1948, compete in
LEB Oro LEB or Leb may refer to: * Lausanne–Echallens–Bercher railway, Switzerland * Lebanon, UNDP country code * Lebanon Municipal Airport (New Hampshire) (FAA identifier) * Lexham English Bible * Life expectancy at birth * Liga Española de Balonce ...
and also play their home games at the Palacio de Deportes (WiZink Center). Until 2021, Estudiantes was one of only three teams that have never been relegated from Spain's top division. Historically, its achievements include three cup titles and four league runners-up placements. Madrid has hosted six European Cup/EuroLeague finals, the last two at the Palacio de Deportes. The city also hosted the final matches for the
1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal en ...
and
2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wa ...
FIBA World Cups, and the
EuroBasket 2007 The 2007 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 2007, was the 35th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe, which also served as Europe qualifier for the 2008 Summer Olympics, giving a berth to th ...
final (all held at the Palacio de Deportes).


Events

The main annual international event in
cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from ...
, the
Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España (; en, Tour of Spain) is an annual multi-stage bicycle race primarily held in Spain, while also occasionally making passes through nearby countries. Inspired by the success of the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia, the ...
(La Vuelta), is one of the three worldwide prestigious three-week-long
Grand Tours In road bicycle racing, a Grand Tour is one of the three major European professional cycling stage races: Giro d'Italia, Tour de France, and Vuelta a España. Collectively they are termed the ''Grand Tours'', and all three races are similar in ...
, and its final stages takes place in Madrid on the first Sunday of September. In
tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball cov ...
, the city hosts Madrid Open, both male and female versions, played on clay court. The event is part of the nine
ATP Masters 1000 The ATP Masters 1000 tournaments (previously known as ATP Masters Series) is an annual series of nine tennis tournaments featuring the top-ranked players on the ATP Tour. The series' events have been held in Europe and North America since the ...
and nine
WTA 1000 tournaments WTA 1000 tournaments is a category of tennis tournaments on the WTA Tour, governed by the Women's Tennis Association. The old WTA Premier Mandatory and Premier 5 tournaments merged into a single highest tier and it is implemented since the r ...
. It is held during the first week of May in the
Caja Mágica La Caja Mágica ''( es, The Magic Box)'' (also known as the Manzanares Park Tennis Center) is a multi-purpose stadium located in Madrid, Spain. Since 2009, it has been the home of the Madrid Open tennis event, and as of 2019, the home of the Dav ...
. Additionally, Madrid hosts the finals of the major tournament for men's national teams,
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organi ...
, since
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
.


Education

Education in Spain Education in Spain is regulated by the ''Ley Orgánica 8/2013, de 9 de diciembre, para la mejora de la calidad educativa'' (LOMCE, Organic Law for the improvement of educational quality) that expands upon Article 27 of the Spanish Constitution ...
is free, and compulsory from 6 to 16 years. The
education system The educational system generally refers to the structure of all institutions and the opportunities for obtaining education within a country. It includes all pre-school institutions, starting from family education, and/or early childhood education ...
is called LOE (''Ley Orgánica de Educación'').


Universities

Madrid is home to many public and private universities. Some of them are among the oldest in the world, and many of them are the most prestigious universities in Spain. The National Distance Education University (''Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia''; UNED) has as its mission the public service of higher education through the modality of distance education. At more than 205,000 students (2015), UNED has the largest student population in Spain and is one of the largest universities in Europe. Since 1972, UNED has sought to translate into action the principle of equal opportunity in access to higher education through a methodology based on the principles of distance learning and focused on the needs of the student. The
Complutense University of Madrid The Complutense University of Madrid ( es, Universidad Complutense de Madrid; UCM, links=no, ''Universidad de Madrid'', ''Universidad Central de Madrid''; la, Universitas Complutensis Matritensis, links=no) is a public research university loc ...
(''Universidad Complutense de Madrid''; UCM) is the second largest university in Spain after UNED and one of the oldest universities in the world. It has over 11,000 staff members and a student population of 117,000. Most of the academic staff is Spanish. It is located on two campuses, the main one of Ciudad Universitaria in the
Moncloa-Aravaca Moncloa-Aravaca is a district of the municipality of Madrid, Spain. It is located to the northwest of the city centre, spanning across both banks of the Manzanares. It is made up of the neighborhoods of Aravaca, Argüelles, Casa de Campo, Ciud ...
district, and the secondary campus of Somosaguas, located outside the city limits in
Pozuelo de Alarcón Pozuelo de Alarcón () is a municipality in the Community of Madrid, Spain. Bordering the Moncloa-Aravaca district of Madrid proper to its west, Pozuelo de Alarcón is surrounded by large Mediterranean pine-tree forests: the Casa de Campo, the ...
and founded in 1971. The Complutense University of Madrid was founded in
Alcalá de Henares Alcalá de Henares () is a Spanish city in the Community of Madrid. Straddling the Henares River, it is located to the northeast of the centre of Madrid. , it has a population of 193,751, making it the region's third-most populated municipality ...
, old Complutum, by Cardinal Cisneros in 1499. Nevertherless, its real origin dates back to 1293, when King
Sancho IV of Castile Sancho IV of Castile (12 May 1258 – 25 April 1295) called the Brave (''el Bravo''), was the king of Castile, León and Galicia from 1284 to his death. Following his brother Ferdinand's death, he gained the support of nobles that ...
built the General Schools of Alcalá, which would give rise to Cisnero's Complutense University. During the course of 1509–1510 five schools were already operative: ''Artes y Filosofía'' (Arts and Philosophy), ''Teología'' (Theology), ''Derecho Canónico'' (Canonical Laws), ''Letras'' (Liberal Arts) and ''Medicina'' (Medicine). In 1836, during the reign of
Isabel II Isabella II ( es, Isabel II; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904), was Queen of Spain from 29 September 1833 until 30 September 1868. Shortly before her birth, the King Ferdinand VII of Spain issued a Pragmatic Sanction to ensure the successio ...
, the university was moved to Madrid, where it took the name of Central University and was located at San Bernardo Street. Subsequently, in 1927, a new University City (Ciudad Universitaria) was planned to be built in the district of Moncloa-Aravaca, in lands handed over by the King
Alfonso XIII Alfonso XIII (17 May 1886 – 28 February 1941), also known as El Africano or the African, was King of Spain from 17 May 1886 to 14 April 1931, when the Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed. He was a monarch from birth as his father, Alf ...
to this purpose. The
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...
turned the University City into a war zone, causing the destruction of several schools in the area, as well as the loss of part of its rich scientific, artistic and bibliographic heritage. In 1970 the Government reformed the High Education, and the Central University became the Complutense University of Madrid. It was then when the new campus at Somosaguas was created to house the new School of Social Sciences. The old Alcalá campus was reopened as the independent UAH,
University of Alcalá The University of Alcalá ( es, Universidad de Alcalá) is a public university located in Alcalá de Henares, a city 35 km (22 miles) northeast of Madrid in Spain and also the third-largest city of the region. It was founded in 1293 as a ...
, in 1977. Complutense also serves to the population of students who select Madrid as their residency during their
study abroad International students, or foreign students, are students who undertake all or part of their tertiary education in a country other than their own and move to that country for the purpose of studying. In 2019, there were over 6 million internati ...
period. Students from the United States for example, might go to Madrid on a program like API (Academic Programs International) and study at Complutense for an intense immersion into the Spanish Language. After studying at the university, students return home with a fluent sense of Spanish as well as culture and diversity. The
Technical University of Madrid The Technical University of Madrid or sometimes called Polytechnic University of Madrid ( es, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, UPM) is a public university, located in Madrid, Spain. It was founded in 1971 as the result of merging different Te ...
(''Universidad Politécnica de Madrid''; UPM), is the top technical university in Spain. It is the result of the merger of different
Technical Schools In the United States, a technical school is a type of two-year college that covers specialized fields such as business, finance, hospitality, tourism, construction, engineering, visual arts, information technology and community work. Associa ...
of Engineering. It shares the Ciudad Universitaria campus with the UCM, while it also owns several schools scattered in the city centre and additional campuses in the
Puente de Vallecas Puente de Vallecas (''Bridge of Vallecas'') is one of the 21 districts of the city of Madrid, Spain. It forms, with the district of Villa de Vallecas Villa de Vallecas (''Village of Vallecas'') is one of the 21 districts of the city of Madrid, S ...
district and in the neighbouring municipality of
Boadilla del Monte Boadilla del Monte () is a Spanish town and municipality located in the west of the Community of Madrid, inside its metropolitan area. It has the second highest level of income per capita in all of the country of Spain. In 2017, it had a popula ...
. The
Autonomous University of Madrid The Autonomous University of Madrid ( es, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid; UAM), commonly known as simply la Autónoma, is a Spanish public university located in Madrid, Spain. The university was founded in 1968 alongside the Autonomous Univers ...
(''Universidad Autónoma de Madrid''; UAM) was instituted under the leadership of the physicist,
Nicolás Cabrera Nicolás Cabrera (1913–1989), was a Spanish physicist who did important work on the theories of crystal growth (specifically the Burton–Cabrera–Frank theory) and the oxidisation of metals. He was the son of another famous Spanish physic ...
. The Autonomous University is widely recognised for its research strengths in
theoretical physics Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain and predict natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental physics, which uses experim ...
. Known simply as ''La Autónoma'' by locals, its main site is the Cantoblanco Campus, located at the North of the municipality, close to its boundaries with the neighbouring municipalities of Alcobendas,
San Sebastián de los Reyes San Sebastián de los Reyes (colloquially called "Sanse") is a municipality in the Community of Madrid, Spain. Founded in 1492, it is located north of Madrid. Geography It forms an urban continuum with the neighboring Alcobendas, Transpor ...
and
Tres Cantos Tres Cantos is a municipality of Spain located in Community of Madrid. Originally belonging to Colmenar Viejo, it seceded from the latter municipality in 1991, becoming the youngest municipality in the region. The urbanised area was conceived as ...
. Located on the main site are the Rectorate building and the Faculties of Science, Philosophy and
Fine Arts In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwor ...
, Law,
Economic Science Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyze ...
and
Business Studies Business studies, often simply called business, is a field of study that deals with the principles of business, management, and economics. It combines elements of accountancy, finance, marketing, organizational studies, human resource management, ...
, Psychology, Higher School of
Computing Science Computer science is the study of computation, automation, and information. Computer science spans theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, information theory, and automation) to practical disciplines (including ...
and Engineering, and the Faculty of
Teacher Training Teacher education or teacher training refers to programs, policies, procedures, and provision designed to equip (prospective) teachers with the knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, approaches, methodologies and skills they require to perform their t ...
and Education. The UAM is considered the institution to study law in Spain, The
Medical School A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, or part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS, ...
is sited outside the main site and beside the Hospital Universitario La Paz. The private
Comillas Pontifical University Comillas Pontifical University ( es, Universidad Pontificia Comillas) is a private Catholic higher education institution run by the Spanish Province of the Society of Jesus in Madrid Spain. The university is involved in a number of academic exch ...
(''Universidad Pontificia Comillas''; UPC) has its rectorate and several faculties in Madrid. The private Nebrija University is also based in Madrid. Some of the big public universities headquartered in the surrounding municipalities also have secondary campuses in Madrid proper: it is the case of the
Charles III University of Madrid University Charles III of Madrid ( es, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid) (UC3M) is a public university in the Community of Madrid, Spain. Established in 1989, UC3M is an institution with a distinctly international profile. It offers a broad ran ...
(''Universidad Carlos III de Madrid''; UC3M) with its main site in
Getafe Getafe () is a municipality and a city in Spain belonging to the Community of Madrid. , it has a population of 180,747, the region's sixth most populated municipality. Getafe is located 13 km south of Madrid's city centre, within a flat ar ...
and an educational facility in
Embajadores Embajadores is an administrative neighborhood (''barrio'') of Madrid, belonging to the Centro District. Delimitation The area lies in the southern part of the Centro District, the later located in the centre of the city, as its name indicates. ...
(after signing a deal with the regional government and the city council in 2011) and the
King Juan Carlos University Rey Juan Carlos University ( es, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, URJC) is a Spanish public research university located in the southern area of the Community of Madrid (Spain), with five campuses at Móstoles, Alcorcón, Vicálvaro, Aranjuez and Fue ...
(''Universidad Rey Juan Carlos''; URJC) having its main site in Móstoles and a secondary campus in Vicálvaro. The private Camilo José Cela University (''Universidad Camilo José Cela''; UCJC) has a postgrade school in
Chamberí Chamberí is a district of Madrid, Spain. It is further subdivided into six neighborhoods ( Gaztambide, Arapiles, Trafalgar, Almagro, Ríos Rosas and Vallehermoso). The district junta is headquartered at the . The current urban outline was bo ...
.


Business schools

IE Business School (formerly Instituto de Empresa) has its main campus on the border of the Chamartín and Salamanca districts of Madrid. IE Business School recently ranked #1 in WSJ's 2009 rankings for Best MBA Programs under 2 years. It scored ahead of usual stalwarts,
INSEAD INSEAD, a contraction of "Institut Européen d'Administration des Affaires" () is a non-profit business school that maintains campuses in Europe (Fontainebleau, France), Asia (Singapore), the Middle East (Abu Dhabi, UAE), and North America (San ...
and IMD, giving it top billing among International MBA programs. Although based in
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
, both
IESE Business School IESE Business School is the graduate business school of the University of Navarra. Founded in 1958 in Barcelona where its main campus is located,López, T. & Pampliega, J“La fundación del IESE (1956–1958)” Universidad de Navarra, Bibliote ...
and
ESADE Business School ESADE Business School is a private college and graduate school located in Barcelona, Spain. It is part of ESADE ( Catalan: ''Escola Superior d'Administració i Direcció d'Empreses'', Spanish: ''Escuela Superior de Administración y Dirección d ...
also have Madrid campuses. These three schools are the top-ranked
business school A business school is a university-level institution that confers degrees in business administration or management. A business school may also be referred to as school of management, management school, school of business administration, or ...
s in Spain, consistently rank among the top 20 business schools globally, and offer
MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...
programs (in English or Spanish) as well as other business degrees. Madrid is a good destination for business schools and a city much desired by foreign students. The most important Spanish business schools (IESE, IE, ESADE) have invested 125 million euros in expanding their campuses in Madrid in 2020. Other Madrid business schools and universities that have MBA programs include:
EAE Business School The EAE Business School is a private business school founded in 1958 with campuses in Madrid and Barcelona (Spain). History Founded in 1958 by José de Orbaneja y Aragón. In 2006, Grupo Planeta bought EAE Business School. EAE has one campus ...
(in English and Spanish), the
Charles III University of Madrid University Charles III of Madrid ( es, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid) (UC3M) is a public university in the Community of Madrid, Spain. Established in 1989, UC3M is an institution with a distinctly international profile. It offers a broad ran ...
through the ''Centro de Ampliación de Estudios'' (in English or Spanish); the
Comillas Pontifical University Comillas Pontifical University ( es, Universidad Pontificia Comillas) is a private Catholic higher education institution run by the Spanish Province of the Society of Jesus in Madrid Spain. The university is involved in a number of academic exch ...
(in Spanish only) and the
Technical University of Madrid The Technical University of Madrid or sometimes called Polytechnic University of Madrid ( es, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, UPM) is a public university, located in Madrid, Spain. It was founded in 1971 as the result of merging different Te ...
(in Spanish only).


Multilingual schools

* IES Fortuny


Transport

In 2018, Madrid banned all non-resident vehicles from its downtown areas. Madrid is served by several roads and three modes of public surface transport, and two airports, one of them being almost two different airports. A great many important road, rail and air links converge on the capital, providing effective connections with other parts of the metropolitan region and with the rest of Spain and other parts of Europe.


Road transport

;Madrid Central Cars (except for hybrid and electric vehicles as well as residents and guests) were banned in the Madrid Central low-emission zone in 2018. Pollution in the area dropped following the ban. In 2016 it was announced that Madrid will stop the use of all diesel powered cars and trucks within the next decade. ;Radial roads Madrid is the centre of the most important roads of Spain. Already in 1720, the ''Reglamento General de Postas'' enacted by Philip V configurated the basis of a radial system of roads in the country. Madrid features a number of the most prominent ''
autovía An ''autovía'' is one of two classes of major highway in the Spanish road system similar to a British motorway or an American freeway. It is akin to the autopista, the other major highway class, but has fewer features and is never a toll roa ...
s'' (fast dualled highways), part of the . Clock-wise starting from the north: the A-1 (Madrid– IrúnFrench border), A-2 (Madrid–
Zaragoza Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Province of Zaragoza, Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Ara ...
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
–French border), A-3 (Madrid–
Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...
), A-4 (Madrid– Córdoba
Sevilla Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...
), A-5 (Madrid–
Badajoz Badajoz (; formerly written ''Badajos'' in English) is the capital of the Province of Badajoz in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. It is situated close to the Portuguese border, on the left bank of the river Guadiana. The populati ...
Portuguese border) and the A-6 (Madrid–
A Coruña A Coruña (; es, La Coruña ; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality of Galicia, Spain. A Coruña is the most populated city in Galicia and the second most populated municipality in the autonomous community and s ...
). The A-42, another highway connecting Madrid to Toledo, is also part of the State Network. The
M-607 M6, M06, M.6, or M-6 may refer to: Military * M6 bayonet, a bayonet for the M14 rifle * M6 Bomb Truck, a truck used to move bombs during World War II * M6 Gun Motor Carriage, a United States wheeled Tank Destroyer of the Second World War * M6 ...
connects Madrid to the Puerto de Navacerrada. It is a fast dualled highway in its initial stretch from Madrid to
Colmenar Viejo Colmenar Viejo is a town and municipality of about 48,614 inhabitants, located in the Community of Madrid, Spain, 30 kilometers north of Madrid on the M-607 motorway. It belongs to the comarca of Cuenca Alta del Manzanares. Main sights In the ...
, and part of the (in relation to the concerning administration, not to the technical features of the road). Due to the large amount of traffic, new toll highways were built parallel to the main national freeways. Their names are , R-3 motorway (Spain), R-3, R-4 motorway (Spain), R-4 and and they were intended to provide a paid alternative to the often overcrowded free radials. However, except the R-3, they do not end close to the M-30 innermost ring road, as the R-2 finishes in the M-40, the R-4 in the M-50 and the R-5 in the M-40. ;Orbital roads Also Madrid road network includes four ring road, orbital ones at different distances from the centre. The innermost ring-road, the M-30, is the only one with its path strictly located within the Madrid municipal limits. It is owned by the Madrid City Council and operated by Madrid Calle 30, S.A. It is the busiest Spanish road, famous for its traffic jams. A significant portion of the southern part runs underground parallel to the Manzanares, with tunnel sections of more than in length and 3 to 6 lanes in each direction. The second ring-road, the Autopista de Circunvalación M-40, M-40 (part of the State Road Network) circles the city, while also extending to other surrounding municipalities. A NW stretch of the road runs underground, below the southern reaches of the Monte de El Pardo protected area. The Autopista de Circunvalación M-45, M-45 partially circles the city, connecting the M-40 and M-50, passing through areas like Villaverde and Vallecas in the South-East of the municipality. The Autopista de Circunvalación M-50, M-50, the Madrid's outer ring road, connects municipalities and cities in the metropolitan area, like Fuenlabrada, Móstoles,
Getafe Getafe () is a municipality and a city in Spain belonging to the Community of Madrid. , it has a population of 180,747, the region's sixth most populated municipality. Getafe is located 13 km south of Madrid's city centre, within a flat ar ...
, Leganés in the South and
Boadilla del Monte Boadilla del Monte () is a Spanish town and municipality located in the west of the Community of Madrid, inside its metropolitan area. It has the second highest level of income per capita in all of the country of Spain. In 2017, it had a popula ...
and Las Rozas de Madrid, Las Rozas in the West.


Public transport

There are four major components of public transport, with many transport hub, intermodal interchanges. The Consorcio Regional de Transportes de Madrid (CRTM) coordinates the
public transport Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typi ...
operations across multiple providers in the region, harmonizing fares for the commuter rail, rapid transit, light rail and bus transport services provided by different operators. ;Metro The Metro is the rapid transit system serving Madrid as well as some suburbs. Founded in 1919, it underwent extensive enlargement in the second half of the 20th century. It is the second longest metro system in Europe (after London's) at . , it has 302 stations. Only the Métro of Paris has more stations. It features 13 lines; 12 of them are colour-coded and numbered 1 to 12 (Line 1 (Madrid Metro), Line 1, Line 2 (Madrid Metro), Line 2, Line 3 (Madrid Metro), Line 3, Line 4 (Madrid Metro), Line 4, Line 5 (Madrid Metro), Line 5, Line 6 (Madrid Metro), Line 6, Line 7 (Madrid Metro), Line 7, Line 8 (Madrid Metro), Line 8, Line 9 (Madrid Metro), Line 9, Line 10 (Madrid Metro), Line 10, Line 11 (Madrid Metro), Line 11 and Line 12 (Madrid Metro), Line 12), while the other one, the short ''Ramal (Madrid Metro), Ramal'' (R), links Ópera to Príncipe Pío. ;Cercanías Cercanías Madrid is the commuter rail service used for longer distances from the suburbs and beyond into Madrid, consisting of nine lines totalling and more than 90 stations. With fewer stops inside the centre of the city they are faster than the Metro, but run less frequently. This system is connected with Metro (presently 22 stations) and Light Metro. The lines are named: C-1 (Cercanías Madrid), C-1, C-2 (Cercanías Madrid), C-2, C-3 (Cercanías Madrid), C-3, C-4 (Cercanías Madrid), C-4, C-5 (Cercanías Madrid), C-5, C-7 (Cercanías Madrid), C-7, C-8 (Cercanías Madrid), C-8, C-9 (Cercanías Madrid), C-9, C-10 (Cercanías Madrid), C-10, respectively. ;Buses There is a dense network of bus routes, run by the municipal company Empresa Municipal de Transportes de Madrid, Empresa Municipal de Transportes (or EMT Madrid), which operates 24 hours a day; special services called "N lines" are run during nighttime. The special Airport Express Shuttle line connecting the airport with the city centre features distinctively yellow buses. In addition to the urban lines operated by the EMT, the green buses (''interurbanos'') connect the city with the suburbs. The later lines, while also regulated by the CRTM, are often run by private operators. Almost half of all journeys in the metropolitan area are made on public transport, a very high proportion compared with most European cities. Madrid has 15723 taxis around all the city. ;Taxi The taxicabs are regulated by a specific sub-division of taxi service, a body dependent of the Madrid City Council. The authorisation entails a badge for the vehicle and a license for the driver, who has to be older than 18. Since the 1970s, the fleet of taxis has remained stable roughly around vehicles, accounting for in 2014.


Long-distance transport

In terms of longer-distance transport, Madrid is the central node of the system of ''
autovía An ''autovía'' is one of two classes of major highway in the Spanish road system similar to a British motorway or an American freeway. It is akin to the autopista, the other major highway class, but has fewer features and is never a toll roa ...
s'', giving the city direct fast road links with most parts of Spain and with France and Portugal. It is also the focal point of one of the world's three largest
high-speed rail High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail system that runs significantly faster than traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated tracks. While there is no single standard that applies worldwide, lines ...
systems, ''Alta Velocidad Española'' (
AVE ''Alta Velocidad Española'' (''AVE'') is a service of high-speed rail in Spain operated by Renfe, the Spanish national railway company, at speeds of up to . As of December 2021, the Spanish high-speed rail network, on part of which the AVE s ...
), which has brought major cities such as Seville and Barcelona within 2.5 hours travel time. There are now of AVE track, connecting Madrid with 17 provincial capitals, and further lines are under construction. Also Spain business are designing new high speed trains which will be the new generation
AVE ''Alta Velocidad Española'' (''AVE'') is a service of high-speed rail in Spain operated by Renfe, the Spanish national railway company, at speeds of up to . As of December 2021, the Spanish high-speed rail network, on part of which the AVE s ...
like Talgo AVRIL. Aside from the local and regional bus commuting services, Madrid is also a node for long-distance bus connections to plenty of national destinations. The in Méndez Álvaro, the busiest bus station in the country, also features international bus connections to cities in Morocco as well as to diverse European destinations.


Airport

Madrid is also home to the Madrid-Barajas Airport, the sixth-largest airport in Europe, handling over 60 million passengers annually, of whom 70% are international travellers, in addition to the majority of Spain's air freight movements. Barajas is a major European hub, yet a largely westward facing one, specialized in the
Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America, North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. ...
, with a comparatively lighter connectivity to Asia. Madrid's location at the centre of the
Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, def ...
makes it a major logistics base. Madrid-Barajas Airport has 4 Terminals and also the terminal 4S, called Satellite terminal, this terminal is from the terminal 4 and connected by an Automated People Mover System (AMP) train. The smaller (and older) Cuatro Vientos Airport has a dual military-civilian use and hosts several aviation schools. The Torrejón Air Base, located in the neighbouring municipality of Torrejón de Ardoz, also has a secondary civilian use aside from the military purpose.


International relations


Diplomacy

Madrid hosts List of diplomatic missions in Spain, 121 foreign embassies accredited before Spain, comprising the totality of resident embassies in the country. The headquarters of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Spain), Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation and the Diplomatic School of Spain, Diplomatic School are also located in the city.


International organizations

Madrid hosts the seat of international organizations such as the United Nations'
World Tourism Organization The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is the United Nations specialized agency entrusted with the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. Its headquarters are in Madrid, Spain. UNWTO is the leading inter ...
(UNWTO), the
Ibero-American General Secretariat The Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB) is the permanent support body to the Pro-Tempore Secretariat in the preparation of Ibero-American Summits. Founded in 2005 in replacement of the Secretariat of Ibero-American Cooperation, its main task ...
(SEGIB), the
Organization of Ibero-American States The Organization of Ibero-American States ( es, Organización de Estados Iberoamericanos, pt, Organização de Estados Iberoamericanos, ca, Organització d'Estats Iberoamericans; abbreviated as OEI), formally the Organization of Ibero-American ...
(OEI), the (OIJ), the (OISS), the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), the Club of Madrid and the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).


Twin towns and sister cities

Madrid has reached twin towns, sister city 'agreements' (''acuerdos'') with: *Tokyo, Japan (1965) *Seoul, South Korea (1978) *Lisbon, Portugal (1979) *Panama City, Panama (1980) *New York City, New York, United States (1982) *Malabo, Equatorial Guinea (1982) *Bordeaux, France (1984) *Nouakchott, Mauritania (1986) *
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...
, Germany (1988) *Manila, Philippines (2005) *Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (2007) *Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (2007) *Miami, United States (2014) Madrid has reached twin towns, sister city 'minutes' (''actas'') with: *Rabat, Morocco (1988) *Tripoli, Libya (1988)


Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities

Madrid is part of the Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities establishing brotherly relations with the following cities through the issuing of a collective statement in October 1982: *Asunción, Paraguay *Bogotá, Colombia *Buenos Aires, Argentina *Caracas, Venezuela *Guatemala City, Guatemala *Havana, Cuba *La Paz, Bolivia *Lima, Peru *Lisbon, Portugal *Managua, Nicaragua *Mexico City, Mexico *Montevideo, Uruguay *Panama City, Panama *Quito, Ecuador *Rio de Janeiro, Brazil *San Jose (Costa Rica), San Jose, Costa Rica *San Juan (Puerto Rico), San Juan, Puerto Rico *San Salvador, El Salvador *Santiago, Chile *Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic *Tegucigalpa, Honduras


Other city partnerships

*
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...
, Greece *Beijing, China *Belgrade, Serbia *Brasilia, Brazil *Brussels, Belgium *Budapest, Hungary *Cebu City, Philippines *Chongqing, China *Davao City, Philippines *Guadalajara, Mexico *Kathmandu, Nepal *Lumbini, Nepal *Moscow, Russia *
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
, France *Prague, Czech Republic *Rome, Italy *Sofia, Bulgaria *Sucre, Bolivia *Warsaw, Poland *Zamboanga City, Philippines


Partnerships with international organizations

*C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, C-40 Cities (C40) *International Labour Organization (OIT) *
Ibero-American General Secretariat The Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB) is the permanent support body to the Pro-Tempore Secretariat in the preparation of Ibero-American Summits. Founded in 2005 in replacement of the Secretariat of Ibero-American Cooperation, its main task ...
(SEGIB) *UNESCO, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) *United Nations Human Settlements Programme (ONU-HABITAT)


Notable people


Honours

*Madrid Dome in Aristotle Mountains, Graham Land, in Antarctica is named after the city.Madrid Dome.
Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research, SCAR Composite Antarctic Gazetteer.


See also

*C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group *Madrid Conference of 1991 *Mayor of Madrid *List of tallest buildings in Madrid *OPENCities *List of films set in Madrid


References


Footnotes


Citations


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * *


External links

*
Official website of Madrid on tourism and business
*[https://www.postalcodigo.com/madrid Postal codes in Madrid] {{Authority control Madrid, Capitals in Europe Municipalities in the Community of Madrid Populated places established in the 9th century 9th-century establishments in Spain