Buen Retiro Palace (Spanish: ''Palacio del Buen Retiro'') in

Madrid 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 ...

was a large palace complex designed by the architect

Alonso Carbonell Alonso is a Spanish name of Germanic origin that is a Castilian variant of ''Adalfuns''. Geographical distribution As of 2014, 36.6% of all known bearers of the surname ''Alonso'' were residents of Spain (frequency 1:222), 26.1% of Mexico (1:83 ...

(c. 1590–1660) and built on the orders of

Philip IV of Spain Philip IV ( es, Felipe, pt, Filipe; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered ...

as a secondary residence and place of recreation (hence its name). It was built in what was then the eastern limits of the city of Madrid. Today, what little remains of its buildings and gardens forms the Retiro Park.

History

Philip IV used to stay occasionally in some rooms annexed to the monastery of San Jerónimo el Real (close to the current location of 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 ...

, which received the name of the ''Royal Quarters''. The reason for these frequent visits could be that the so-called ''Planet King'' particularly enjoyed walking in the attached farm, property of the Count-Duke of Olivares, his royal favourite and minister. Olivares, with the intention of pleasing the monarch, planned in 1629 and started in 1630 the construction of a series of offices and pavilions as an extension of the Royal Quarters, which ended up forming the Buen Retiro Palace. The building of the palace was not something planned from the start, but occurred over a period of seven years (until 1640 during which further additions were built successively). Once finished, the palace consisted of more than 20 buildings and two large open squares used for court entertainments and various other acts. The palace complex was surrounded by a large expanse of gardens and ponds, giving it a playful character. The king only used to spend a few days per year, usually in the summer, in his second home, but a large campaign was still carried out to provide the palace with an artistic ornamental level that would match that of the

Royal Alcazar 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 c ...

, his main residence. The lack of antique paintings in the market led to the commission of a series of paintings from

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adm ...

, which required the management of ambassadors and others of Philip IV's workers. Several of these pictures remain in the

; some highlights are the landscapes of

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 ...

Nicolas Poussin Nicolas Poussin (, , ; June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was the leading painter of the classical French Baroque style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and mythological subjects painted for ...

and

Gaspard Dughet Gaspard Dughet (15 June 1615 – 25 May 1675), also known as Gaspard Poussin, was a French painter born in Rome. Life Dughet was born in Rome, the son of a French pastry-cook and his Italian wife. He has always generally been considered as a Fr ...

, Biblical and mythological scenes by

Massimo Stanzione Massimo Stanzione (also called Stanzioni; 1585 – 1656) was an Italian Baroque painter, mainly active in Naples, where he and his rival Jusepe de Ribera dominated the painting scene for several decades. He was primarily a painter of altarpiec ...

and several paintings of ancient Rome by

Giovanni Lanfranco Giovanni Lanfranco (26 January 1582 – 30 November 1647) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period. Biography Giovanni Gaspare Lanfranco was born in Parma, the third son of Stefano and Cornelia Lanfranchi, and was placed as a page in the ho ...

, among other artists. For the ''

Salón de Reinos The ''Salón de Reinos'' (translated as "Hall of the Kingdoms" or "Hall of Realms") or ''salón grande'' ("great hall") is a 17th-century building in Madrid, originally a wing of the Buen Retiro Palace. The Salón de Reinos and the Casón del B ...

'' (royal reception room; until recently the Army Museum) a commemorative series of Spanish military triumphs was commissioned, including

Diego Velázquez Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (baptized June 6, 1599August 6, 1660) was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV of Spain and Portugal, and of the Spanish Golden Age. He was an individualistic artist of th ...

' famous painting ''

The Surrender of Breda ''La rendición de Breda'' (English: ''The Surrender of Breda'', also known as ''Las lanzas'' – ''The Lances'') is a painting by the Spanish Golden Age painter Diego Velázquez. It was completed during the years 1634–35, inspired by Velázque ...

''. Other paintings of the series are due to

Francisco Zurbarán Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...

Antonio de Pereda Antonio de Pereda y Salgado ( – January 30, 1678) was a Spanish Baroque-era painter, best known for his still lifes. Biography Pereda was born in Valladolid, the eldest of three brothers from an artistic family. His father, mother and two b ...

Juan Bautista Maíno Friar Juan Bautista Maíno, or Mayno (October 1581, Pastrana – 1 April 1649, Madrid) was a Spanish Baroque painter. Biography His father was a merchant who sold Milanese fabrics and his mother was a Portuguese noblewoman. Both were at th ...

and

Vicente Carducho Vincenzio Carduccio (in Spanish, sometimes ''Vicencio'' or Vicente Carducho; 1576 or 1578–1638) was an Italian painter who spent his career in Spain. Biography He was born in Florence, and was trained as a painter by his brother Ba ...

. The palace remained a royal residence until the late 18th century. After the fire of the

in December 1734, the Buen Retiro Palace became the main seat of the royal court until the construction of the new

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 ...

, which was finished in 1764. Due to its hasty design and construction, the building of the palace was low-quality, including the materials used, and this was the cause of its end. During 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 ...

, in 1808 French troops stationed in Madrid used the palace and its annexes as barracks. Powder kegs were stored in the gardens and a bunker was built for them, causing irreparable damage to the area. Furthermore, the buildings were seriously damaged, so much so that when

Isabella 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 successi ...

tried to begin its restoration, it was decided that nothing could be done but to demolish it almost completely.

Today

The main remaining trace of the Palace complex is the gardens of Retiro Park, although these have no resemblance to the original design of the gardens, and encompass only half the original extent. Two other buildings remain, much altered from their original exteriors, both now destined to become part of the

complex: *The ''

'' (originally the royal reception room), which for decades housed the Museo del Ejército (Army Museum) until it moved to the Alcázar de Toledo in 2010–12. *The ''Salón de Baile'' (originally the ballroom), now known as the

Casón del Buen Retiro The Casón del Buen Retiro is an annex of the Museo del Prado complex in Madrid. Following major restoration work, which was completed in October 2007,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 ceiling of the main room is decorated by a magnificent fresco by the Italian artist

Luca Giordano Luca Giordano (18 October 1634 – 3 January 1705) was an Italian late-Baroque painter and printmaker in etching. Fluent and decorative, he worked successfully in Naples and Rome, Florence, and Venice, before spending a decade in Spain. Earl ...

, painted around 1696–1697 for King

Charles II of Spain Charles II of Spain (''Spanish: Carlos II,'' 6 November 1661 – 1 November 1700), known as the Bewitched (''Spanish: El Hechizado''), was the last Habsburg ruler of the Spanish Empire. Best remembered for his physical disabilities and the War ...

and depicting ''The Apotheosis of the Spanish Monarchy''.

External links

*
El Real Sitio del Buen Retiro
*

{{Coord, 40, 24, 49.23, N, 3, 40, 54.08, W, type:landmark_region:ES, display=title Palaces in Madrid Former palaces in Spain Royal residences in Spain Buildings and structures completed in 1640 Buildings and structures demolished in the 1800s Demolished buildings and structures in Madrid Buildings and structures in Spain demolished during the Peninsular War 1640 establishments in Spain 17th-century architecture Herrerian architecture 1800s disestablishments in Spain

History

Today

See also

External links