Habsburg Madrid walking tour, known in Spanish as Madrid of the Austrias, is a journey to the most important period for this city: the moment in which Madrid was named capital of the Empire in 1561, triggering a huge growth and a new borough. During this visit we’ll talk about the monarchs of this dynasty: from Charles V the Holy Roman Emperor, who became king in 1516, to Charles II, the Bewitched, died in 1700. In between, Philip II, who declared Madrid his capital, Philip III the Pious and Philip IV the great patron of Spanish Golden Age in culture.
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Architecture in Habsburg Madrid walking tour
In this Habsburg Madrid walking tour you’ll also discover how the style of this period was. Some of the best examples, which could be part of the route, are Santa Cruz Palace, Casa de la Villa and Casa de Cisneros, in Plaza de la Villa. And of course, the Plaza Mayor (the Main Square), which still keeps the features of Habsburg style, although it suffered a devastating fire in 1790. Therefore, most of the current structure dates back to Bourbons period.
During our itinerary we’ll also discover how the religious architecture was in that age. For instance, San Ginés Church. If we walk with a good pace, we may visit other interesting temples like Saint Andrew’s Church, Bishops’s Chapel or the Military Cathedral of Spain (Sacramento Church). Or even Saint Isidore Collegiate Church, which holds the sarcophagus with the remains of the patron saint, Isidore the Laborer. There we’ll be able to watch the first example of an useful and original invention in this city: the encamonada dome.
A walking tour full of anecdotes
But we won’t speak only about kings, saints and bishops in this Habsburg Madrid walking tour. As in other tours, we’ll also discover many other anecdotes. They will show us how life was in the past, during 16th and 17th centuries. For instance, through malice houses which still remain nowadays. Besides, we’ll visit popular places like Plaza de la Paja, which is also the main square of Medieval Madrid and the heart of a very traditional borough. In fact, it still hosts a famous school: Colegio de San Ildefonso, in which San Ildefonso children study, those in charge of singing our Christmas Lottery.
As you can imagine, this Habsburg Madrid walking tour is a route through the most genuine borough of Madrid, very different from other downtowns in the rest of Spanish cities and European capitals. Do you come along with me to discover it?
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