Santa Cruz Palace, Madrid
Encyclopedia
The Palacio de Santa Cruz or Palace of Holy Cross is a baroque
building in central Madrid
, Spain. It now houses the foreign ministry or Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores de España. It was used as a jail until the reign of Philip IV of Spain
, when it was converted into a palace.
Construction was commissioned in 1629 by Philip IV to house both courts and jail facilities. The architect Juan Gómez de Mora
worked on it from 1629-1636, and later other architects like José de Villareal, Bartolomé Hurtado García, and José del Olmo added elements.
In 1767 it changed from jail to the Palacio de Santa Cruz, due to its proximity to the church of Santa Cruz. A fire in 1791, destroyed all but the facade.
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
building in central Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Spain. It now houses the foreign ministry or Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores de España. It was used as a jail until the reign of Philip IV of Spain
Philip IV of Spain
Philip IV was King of Spain between 1621 and 1665, sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands, and King of Portugal until 1640...
, when it was converted into a palace.
Construction was commissioned in 1629 by Philip IV to house both courts and jail facilities. The architect Juan Gómez de Mora
Juan Gómez de Mora
Juan Gómez de Mora was a Spanish architect. His father, also Juan Gómez, was court painter to Philip II of Spain and brother to the architect Francisco de Mora....
worked on it from 1629-1636, and later other architects like José de Villareal, Bartolomé Hurtado García, and José del Olmo added elements.
In 1767 it changed from jail to the Palacio de Santa Cruz, due to its proximity to the church of Santa Cruz. A fire in 1791, destroyed all but the facade.