- Address: Calle de la Princesa, 20, 28008, Madrid, España
- Phone: +34 915 47 53 02
- Official website: http://www.fundacioncasadealba.com/
- Discovery: 1770
- Architect: Edwin Lachens
Sometimes tales seem to us the most real and truthful stories, but in life there are examples where historical facts, events and heritage are similar only to a very beautiful fairy tale. On Princess Street near the famous Grand Avenue and the Plaza of Spain from 1773 stands a majestic building, on the side somewhat similar to the Royal Palace - the palace of Liria, adorned with its own gardens. This is the family nest of the ancient clan of the Dukes of Alba.
Fairy tale history
In the distant past, in 1472, Captain-General of the troops of Castile Garcia Alvarez de Toledo, Count Alba de Tormes for services to the crown issued a decree on the award of the title of Duke. And until now, after more than 500 years, his descendants live and thrive, among which, among other things, are the Navarre kings, the descendants of Columbus, the King of England, James II, and a number of majestic and famous people. Nowadays the genus of dukes is continued by the most titled and wealthy woman in the world - the 18th Duchess of Cayetana de Alba and her five sons and daughter.
Construction of the palace began after a loud wedding and the merger of two of the oldest European families - the Stuarts and Alba, at the request of Jacob Stuart Fitz-James. It went on several stages and was not without the participation of the famous architects of his time, Ventura Rodriguez and Sabatini, who eventually built one of the largest private houses in Madrid with a total area of about 3500 square meters. 200 rooms and halls. The palace has a wide front staircase and a huge library of 9,000 books. Behind the palace are broken English gardens in the romantic style of Versailles. This is the only private green oasis that is on the map of Madrid. The garden is decorated with beautiful statues, and in one corner there is a small cemetery where the favorite dogs of generations of dukes are buried.
In the Spanish Civil War, the Palace of Lyria was badly damaged, many values were destroyed or burned, although most of them could be taken out and hidden in advance. And here after two decades the house was restored and even became accessible to tourists as a museum. The family of Alba managed to collect and partially restore the remains of ancient riches of a kind. The palace contains a valuable collection of paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens, El Greco, Goya, Bruegel, Titian, Renoir and many other famous masters. In addition, the treasury of the Dukes includes 4000 bundles of manuscripts of the genus Alba, about 400 boxes of valuable historical documents, the Alba Bible, Columbus letters, tapestries, porcelain, a collection of expensive medieval weapons, furniture, precious metal products and many family ornaments. Each exhibition hall bears its name, for example, the hall of the Grand Duke, the hall of Goya (not to be confused with the Pantheon of Goya , also located in Madrid ) and others.
It is worth noting that the current Duchess Alba continues to increase her collection of masterpieces, buying at the auctions of antiquities and paintings of the 19-20 centuries. In addition, in the family mansion of the Dukes began to conduct paid private receptions, and the proceeds to maintain the building itself and the preservation of the collection heritage.
Our days
Lyria Palace today, although it continues to be privately owned, but free of charge is open on Saturdays for tourists. To get to the list of visitors to the richest private collection, you must first apply through the city administration or try your luck yourself: put your business card in the mailbox of the building and wait 20-30 minutes: you will be opened if you liked the family of aristocrats. Excursions are held at 10, 11 and 12 hours strictly limited number of tourists.
The nearest public transport stops:
- Metro - Plaza de España and Ventura Rodriguez;
- buses number 1, 2, 44 and 74.
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