Palace of Valsain

The Royal Palace of Valsain (Spanish: Palacio Real de Valsain) is a former Spanish royal residence, which is now in ruins. It is located in Valsain in the Province of Segovia, in the Castile and León Autonomous region of central Spain. It is approximately 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) from Segovia, and 75 kilometres (47 mi) north of Madrid.

The palace of Valsain by Félix Castelo, 1710
The palace of Valsain in 2014
Detail of granite keystones in the ruins of the palace, 2013
Valsain village with the ruins of the former palace

Construction

The Trastamara kings of Castile already had a hunting lodge in Valsain. But the royal palace itself was built between 1552 and 1556 for King Philip II by the architect Gaspar de Vega after the king returned from a trip to France, England, and the Netherlands. The architecture of the palace was heavily influenced by Netherlandish/ Flemish architecture, such as Binche Palace, features of which were until then unknown in Spain: steeply pitched slate roofs, slated spires, dormer windows. These became characteristics of the Habsburg architecture in Spain.

Birthplace

The palace was the birthplace of princess Isabella Clara Eugenia,[1] daughter of Philip II of Spain and his third wife Elisabeth of Valois,[2] who later together with her husband Albert VII, Archduke of Austria became sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands in the Low Countries and the north of modern France.

Spanish match

The English Prince Charles came to Valsain in 1623, during the visit known as the "Spanish match". He admired the orchards and the situation of the building.[3][4]

Burning

On 22 October 1682, the palace burnt down to a shell. Due to the political situation in Spain and the crisis around the succession, King Charles II was not able to restore the palace. His successor King Philip V built close by a new palace: "La Granja" (Royal Palace of La Granja de San Ildefonso). Today only the ruins remain.

References
  1. "Isabel Clara Eugenia tenía años cuando llegó a la casa Thair Julia". Arte Rural (in European Spanish). 2014-11-26. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  2. "Frans Pourbus the Younger (Antwerp 1569 - Paris 1622) - The Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia (1566-1633), Archduchess of Austria". www.royalcollection.org.uk. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
  3. John Nichols, Progresses of James the First, vol. 4 (London, 1828), pp. 914-5.
  4. Henry Ettinghausen, 'Greatest News Story', in Alexander Samson, The Spanish Match: Prince Charles's Journey to Madrid, 1623 (Ashgate, 2006), p. 86.

Bibliography
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