Education and Culture of Madrid

Madrid is the cultural center of Spain, with theaters, museums, libraries, and educational institutions that attract many scholars and visitors.

Of Madrid’s public universities, the oldest and largest is the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, also known as the University of Madrid, with more than 130,000 students.

The school originally opened in the nearby town of Alcalá de Henares in 1508 and was moved to Madrid in 1836.

Another university, the Universidad Autónoma, was opened in 1968 on the north edge of the city, and in 1977 a third, the Universidad de Alcalá, opened in Alcalá de Henares.

The Universidad de Carlos III opened in 1990 on the grounds of an old army base on the south edge of the city.

Madrid has many museums. The most famous is the Museo del Prado

The Prado is actually a complex of three facilities on the eastern side of the Paseo del Prado. It has arguably the best collection of European paintings in the world.

The museum also houses a fine collection of art from the Spanish school, which includes artists such as El Greco, Diego Velázquez, and Francisco de Goya.

Another notable art museum is the Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, a museum of contemporary art named for the current queen of Spain.

It opened in 1986 as a center for temporary exhibits, and its permanent collection was inaugurated in the early 1990s.

The museum specializes in 20th-century paintings, especially works by Spanish artists. It includes one of the most famous paintings by Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, Guernica (1937), which portrays a city bombed during the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939). The painting is an evocative depiction of the tragedy caused by the war.

Madrid also has other notable museums, including the Thyssen-Bornemisza art museum, named after the family that collected its works.

The museum houses about 800 paintings, mostly European, in the Villahermosa Palace.

The Lazaro Galdiano Museum contains paintings, antique jewelry, porcelain, and tapestries.

The National Library, north of the Museo del Prado, has copies of almost every book ever published in Spain, as well as a gallery of Spanish art.

The library also shares its building with the National Archaeological Museum. Madrid’s other notable museums include the Museum of the Army, the Museum of the Navy, the Museum of Bullfighting, and the National Museum of Decorative Arts.

Nearby is the Cultural Center of the City of Madrid, which has an art gallery, conference halls, and a zarzuela theater.

Zarzuela is the Spanish form of light opera. Scattered around the city are numerous other art galleries, many dedicated to the work of particular Spanish artists.

In some ways the most spectacular museum is the Royal Palace itself, where visitors can tour the living quarters of 18th-century and early 20th-century royalty.

The palace also houses a large Carriage Museum, the Royal Armory, and a research library of 18th- and 19th–century books and palace records.

Several of Madrid’s historic buildings have become cultural and administrative centers. Near the Royal Palace is the Royal Opera House.

Originating in the 1850s, the Opera House was renovated in 1997.

The 17th-century Carcel del Corte (City Prison), near the southeast corner of the Plaza Mayor, is now the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Casa del Correo, the city’s original post office that dominates the Puerta del Sol, was built by King Charles III in the 1760s. It now houses the government offices of the Autonomous Region of Madrid.

The huge Cuartel del Conde Duque (Barracks of the Count–Duke) is located a few blocks north of the Royal Palace.

Built in the 1700s as a barracks for the royal cavalry guards, it has been renovated as a cultural center. It now houses the Municipal Archives, the Municipal Periodicals Library, Madrid’s public library, an exhibition gallery, and other cultural facilities.

Madrid has several societies created to promote scholarship in various fields. One of the oldest is the Academy of the Spanish Language, which was founded in 1713.

The Academy of History, founded in 1735, has a major library and collection of historical documents.

The Academy of Fine Arts, founded in 1757, has an important art museum, as well as an archive that includes engravings from which famous artists, such as Francisco de Goya, made their prints.

Another important cultural institution is the Ateneo, which was founded in 1820 and reopened in 1836.

The Ateneo has long been a center for cultural and intellectual debate in Madrid and has one of the city’s finest libraries of 19th- and early 20th-century scholarly books.

Not far from Madrid are several important monuments and places of historical interest.

The most impressive is the immense monastery-palace called El Escorial, located northwest of Madrid at the foot of the Sierra de Guadarrama.

Built by King Philip II from 1563 to 1584, it was Philip’s favorite residence. El Escorial houses the tombs of most of Spain’s kings and queens since Philip, and contains a magnificent art collection and library, which are open to the public.

A few miles away stands a gigantic civil war memorial built by General Franco.

Known as the Valle de los Caidos (Valley of the Fallen), it took more than 15 years to complete.

It consists of a concrete cross nearly 150 m (nearly 500 ft) high, built on top of a huge crypt tunneled out of solid granite inside the mountain itself.

A monument to Franco’s victory in the civil war, and constructed with the forced labor of prisoners of war, it is no longer a very popular place for Spaniards to visit.

Nearer the city at El Pardo, north of Madrid, is La Zarzuela, a small royal palace originally built by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V during the 16th century for use as a hunting lodge.

Today it is the residence of the Spanish royal family.

South of Madrid is the Royal Palace of Aranjuez, a museum and park noted for its extensive gardens.

It was built in the 18th century and was the spring residence of the royal family until the late 19th century because of its mild spring weather.

In the opposite direction, near Segovia, is the Royal Palace of La Granja, a relatively small palace.

During the 18th century the royal court used it as a summer retreat.

The palace gardens include a spectacular collection of fountains inspired by those at the Palace of Versailles in France.