Plaza Mayor
Plaza Mayor, Madrid’s finest architectural space, and once the scene of bullfights, executions, and trials by the Inquisition. Together with the Puerta del Sol, it forms the focus of Old Madrid.
This 17th century square is a legacy of Spain’s Habsburg rulers, and their Rococo influence can be seen in the square’s balconies, dormer windows, pinnacles and steep roofs. Nowadays its arcades are filled with craft shops and cafes, and it’s a splendid place to stroll around and enjoy a coffee, during an excursion from nearby Madrid apartments.
The square has witnessed much turbulent history. Rodrigo Calderon, secretary to Philip III, was executed here in 1621 and his defiance during his final moments is proverbial to this day. ‘As proud as Rodrigo on the scaffold,’ is still in usage in Madrid. Charles III made his triumphal arrival here from Italy in 1760, perhaps the square’s greatest occasion.
Plaza Mayor was built in only two years under Philip III, starting in 1617, through slum clearance. Whilst here from your base in Madrid apartments, don’t miss the fantastically ornate facade of the Casa de la Panaderia, or Bakery, which is decorated with paintings on allegorical themes.
The architect of Plaza Mayor was Juan Gomez de Mora, who succeeded Juan de Herrera, architect of the famous El Escorial, bleak palace of Philip II, who ruled Spain with an Inquisitorial austerity.
Bang in the middle of the Plaza Mayor is a statue of Philip III astride a horse. It was moved here in 1848 from the Casa de Campo.
All Madrid apartments provide easy access to the Plaza Mayor, with its pleasant outdoor cafes and a collectors’ market every Sunday. There is easy access on the south side, to the Calle de Toledo, which leads into the El Rastro, the city’s famous flea-market.
You’ll find traditional restaurants at the top of a flight of steps in the square’s southwest corner, in the Calle de Cuchilleros.
During a day out in Old Madrid from conveniently located Madrid apartments, sit in one of the many coffee shops lining the Plaza Mayor, and watch the Madrilenos go about their business, in that peculiarly relaxed style they have. The residents of Madrid have for years resisted adopting the regimented working hours of the rest of the European Union, and take their long lunches and relaxed chats over coffee very seriously indeed.
