Castle Of Manzanares El Real

Castle of Manzanares el Real The new castle of Manzanares el Real, also known as the palace-fortress of the Mendoza family, is the best conserved castle in the Madrid region. It was built in 1475 on a Romanesque-Mudejar shrine which is still standing. Although there is another older castle in existence, its importance is today overshadowed by the new construction. This structure has large semicircular arched windows, a rectangular courtyard and two galleries supported on octagonal columns. The castle building itself has four turrets at the corners, crowned with decorative balls in the Isabelline style. The castle still belongs to the Duke of Infantado, who has leased it to the Regional Government of Madrid for a period of sixty years. As well as being an interesting tourist destination, it is currently used as a library and for congresses and cultural activities, etc The area of Manzanares el Real where the new castle is situated was the subject of dispute in the 13th century between the councils of Segovia and Madrid, due to the exploitation of the abundant forests and pastures of the upper Manzanares river. In the 15th century these lands passed into the De la Cerda family, and then to Leonor de Guzmán, until during the reign of John II of Spain, they were handed down to Don Diego Hurtado de Mendoza (1365-1404), Admiral of Castile, who is thought to have been responsible for building the first castle. The new castle appears to have been used as a stately home for a very short period, which ended with the fourth Duke of el Infantado. After his death in 1565, the castle was definitively abandoned due to legal differences between the heirs and economic problems. This castle was the site of the initial negotiations for the creation of the Regional Government of Madrid (1981), and the Statute of Autonomy came into being within its walls; it was subsequently passed into law by the Spanish parliament and senate in 1983.

Paula , Debora and Jonathan