The Royal Palace of Madrid, also called the Palace of the East, taking the name of the square on which it faces east (a paradox, because the palace is located in the westernmost area of the city), was and still is the official residence of the Spanish royal family.
Today the palace is used exclusively for ceremonies, conferences and official acts, as the monarchs live in the Zarzuela Palace, located on the outskirts of Madrid.
The palace was built in the same place where the Alcázar stood, a 9th century Muslim fortress built on the orders of the Emir Mohamed I to defend itself from the advance of Christians, which in the 16th century became a royal palace after the decision to establish Madrid as the capital of Spanish Empire; it was the residence of the Spanish royal family until its destruction, caused by a terrible fire on Christmas Eve in 1734, at the time of Philip V.
The reconstruction of the palace took place under the commission of the King of Spain Philip V himself, who ordered that the palace be rebuilt in the same place, but that it was made only of stone without even a piece of wood (excluding the furnishings) to avoid future fires. . The task was entrusted to Filippo Juvarra, but Sacchetti will continue the project after Juvarra's death. The works began in 1735 and lasted twenty-six years. The first ruler to settle in the palace was Charles III in 1764.
The building, consisting of 3418 rooms spread over an area of 135,000 m², is the largest royal residence in Europe.
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