Liria Palace

The Liria Palace (Spanish: Palacio de Liria) is a neoclassical palace in Madrid, Spain. It is the Madrid residence of the Dukes of Alba.

History

Built around 1770 to a design by the architect Ventura Rodríguez, it was commissioned by James Fitz-James Stuart, 3rd Duke of Berwick, who was also the 3rd Duke of Liria (hence the name of the palace). In the early 19th century it passed to the inheritance of the House of Alba. Eugénie de Montijo, last empress consort of the French, died here in exile in 1920.

All but the facades were destroyed during the Spanish Civil War.^[1] It was subsequently rebuilt by Jacobo Fitz-James Stuart, 17th Duke of Alba and his daughter Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, 18th Duchess of Alba who was head of the House of Alba from 1955 to 2014. The British architect Edwin Lutyens provided some designs for the interior, and the reconstruction, although it took place after his death, used his plans.^[2]

Although the 18th Duchess of Alba's official residence was the Liria Palace, in later life she preferred the Palacio de las Dueñas in Seville where she died. Her son and heir Carlos Fitz-James Stuart, 14th Duke of Huéscar resided at the Liria Palace.^[1]

Art collection

The building is protected under Spanish heritage law as a listed monument,^[3] and some of the moveable art works it contains are also protected as Properties of Cultural Interest.

The palace contains a remarkable private collection of European art. The collection includes:

• Paintings by Pietro Perugino, Titian, Palma il Vecchio, El Greco, Anthonis Mor, Goya, Murillo, Zurbarán, Rembrandt, Jacob van Ruisdael, Ribera, Rubens, Francesco Guardi, Ingres, Joshua Reynolds, Courbet, Henri Fantin-Latour, Eugene Boudin and Joaquin Sorolla. One important work by Fra Angelico (Virgin of the pomegranate) was sold to the Prado Museum in 2016.
• Engravings by Dürer, Mantegna, Lucas van Leyden and Van Dyck.
• Sculptures: marble and bronze figures from the Roman Empire to the neoclassical period, including one portrait of Gioacchino Rossini by Lorenzo Bartolini.
• Old documents and books: more than 9,000 books (including one first-edition copy of Don Quixote) and manuscript documents (including the Alba Bible, Papal bulls from the Vatican, the last will of King Philip II of Spain and letters by Christopher Columbus, Titian and Rousseau).
• Archeological finds and decorative arts: Greek painted ceramics, old armor and weapons, 18th-century tapestries from the Gobelins Manufactory, Sèvres porcelains and empire style furniture.

Exhibitions

Usually, it is necessary to apply to visit the Liria Palace to see its art collection.^[4] Some works were put on exhibition at the Cibeles Palace in Madrid in 2012. From September 2015 to January 2016 there is an exhibition of works belonging to the House of Alba, including items from the Liria Palace, in the Meadows Museum, Dallas. Another exhibition, titled Treasures from the House of Alba: 500 Years of Art and Collecting and containing over 130 items, is being held at the Frist Center for the Visual Arts in Nashville, TN from February 5 to May 1, 2016.^[5]

Notes

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Palacio de Liria, Madrid.

Coordinates: 40°25′40″N 3°42′45″W / 40.4277°N 3.7124°W / 40.4277; -3.7124