The Royal Palace of El Pardo is a royal residence in Madrid.
It has been used as the Official Residence of Foreign Heads of State since 1983. It was built by the will of the Emperor Charles V in the 16th century and was later enlarged by order of Charles III. The palace is surrounded by Mount El Pardo, a naturalistic oasis considered the most important Mediterranean forest in the Community of Madrid with an area of 16,000 hectares.
It was Philip II who definitively completed the palace and decorated the Italian-style interiors, with a portrait gallery in which masterpieces by Titian, Antonio Moro and their disciples could be admired. In 1604 a fire destroyed everything.
Philip III and later Philip V proceeded with the reconstruction: thanks to them the interior of the palace was decorated with tapestries with models signed, for example by Goya and the Bayeu family. They are still visible today.
The palace also preserves furniture from the 18th and 19th centuries, as well as important paintings.
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