Description of the attraction
The Palace of Santa Cruz is a baroque building in the center of Madrid in the Plaza de la Provincia, which has been home to the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 1901. Before King Philip V ascended the throne, the palace was used as a royal prison, in which prisoners awaited the verdict of the harsh Spanish Inquisition - for most of them, the next place of residence was the main city square, Plaza Mayor, where they were tortured and executed. The prison was later turned into a luxurious residence.
The Palacio de Santa Cruz was built in 1629-1643 by the architect Juan Gomez de Mora to house a court and prison. Later, other architects contributed to the development of the building, for example, José de Villarreal and Bartolomé Hurtado Garcia. In 1767, the building, which served as a prison, was turned into an aristocratic palace and received the name Palaio de Santa Cruz, as it stood next to the church of the same name. The palace was reconstructed twice: in 1791 after a terrible fire that destroyed everything except the facade, and in 1940 after the destruction caused during the Civil War.
Today, the Palacio de Santa Cruz, influenced by classical Italian and Spanish architecture, is one of the finest examples of Habsburg architecture. By the way, the entire historic center of Madrid is still known as Habsburg, after the dynasty that ruled Spain from the 16th to the 18th century. The red-bricked rectangular Palaio de Santa Cruz with twin towers is also one of the most famous tourist attractions in Madrid.
