Royal Destination - Alcázar in Seville Spain

The Real or Royal Alcázar is situated near the Cathedral and the General Archive
of the Indies in Seville, which is one of Andalusia's most splendid areas.

In 1987 it was listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site and in fact it is
really worth to be on the list.

Alcázar in Seville own picture taken in 2018

The Real Alcázar still has a royal function, it is the home of the royal family of
Spain when they visit Seville!

Besides that the Real Alcázar really has a very nice royal history.

Alcázar in Seville Spain - own picture taken in 2018

Some royal history

The Alcázar in Seville probably is the oldest royal palace of Europe, which is
still used for that purpose.

Originally there was a Roman and later a Visigotic fortress on the place of the
Alcázar.

In 913, Abd-ar-Rahman III, the first Caliph of Al-Andalus (Gordoba) ordered
to build a castle on the site of the fortress.

In the 11th. century, Al-Mu'tamid ibn Abbad, the last ruler of the Abbadid-
dynasty, ordered to expand the castle to a palace.

A lot of visitors for the Alcázar in Seville Spain

Alcázar in Seville - Spain - Entrance

Alcázar Seville Spain, a lot of visitors

In the 14th century, Alfons X of Castile, conquered Seville and ordered to
expand the palace in Seville.

King Peter I of Castile, ordered to build a new palace on the same location.
These building works started already in 1364. Peter used a lot of Moorish
architects.

Later other Kings expanded the Alcázar, in the 16th. century, Holy Roman
Emperor Charles V, added some elements in gothic and in Renaissance
style to the palace.

It was in this Royal Palace that Isabella I of Calstile and Ferdinand II of
Aragon recevied Christopher Columbus after his second voyage to
America.

Alcázar in Seville Spain

The royal palace

The royal palace itself is not only very large (a visit will take at least an
half day), but it has a really nice style due to the different time periods.

Besides its amazing architecture, the royal palace has lots of lovely
gardens, where it is nice to spend some time.

I visited this royal palace in June 2018 and it is certainly one of the most
beautiful places, I've ever seen.

The Amazing Gardens of the Alcázar of Seville

Some special things as the Spanish tiles and the symbol of the Real Alcázar in
a bench.

Tile Details - Alcázar in Seville - Spain 

Tiles with the Royals of Spain - Alcázar in Seville 

The symbol of the Real Alcázar in Seville Spain

Did you know that this royal palace was used in several movies and series?
Inter alia for:

- Lawrence of Arabia;
- Game of Thrones.

Alcázar in Seville Spain 

Alcázar in Seville Spain - ceiling

History-OTD-15 November 1498: Birth of Eleanor of Austria, who became Queen of Portugal and France

On 15 November 1498, Eleanor of Austria was born in Leuven (nowadays a
part of Belgium then a part of the Habsburg Netherlands) as the eldest daughter
of Philip I of Castile (Philip the Handsome) and Joanna of Castile (Joanna the
Mad).

Family

Eleanor was a granddaughter of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I,
Mary of Burgundy, King Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile.

Her siblings were:
Holy Roman Emperor Charles V,
Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I,
Queen Isabella of Denmark,
Queen Mary of Hungary,
Queen Catherine of Portugal.

Eleanor of Austria was named after her paternal great-grandmother, Eleanor
of Portugal, the Holy Roman Empress.

She was a prominent member of the noble House of Habsburg.

Love & Marriage

Eleanor's relatives tried to marry her to the future King of England, Henry VIII,
but he married Eleanor's aunt, Catherine of Aragon instead.

Her relatives also tried to marry her to the King Louis XII and King Francis I
of France or to King Sigismund I of Poland but nothing came of these plans.

In 1517, Eleanor may have had a love affair with Frederick II, Elector Palatine,
her brother Charles once discovered her reading a love letter from Frederick.
Frederick was forced to leave the court and Eleanor had to follow her brother to
Spain.

Queen consort of Portugal

On 16 July 1518, Eleanor married her uncle King Manuel I of Portugal to
avoid the possibility of Portuguese assistance for any rebellion in Castile.
Manuel had previously been married to two of Eleanor's maternal aunts:
Isabella of Aragon and Maria of Aragon.

The royal couple had two children: Infante Charles, who died young and
Infanta Maria, who was later one of the richest princesses of Europe.

At the age of 13, Eleanor of Austria became a widow, when Manuel died of
the plague in 1521. Eleanor returned to the court of Charles in Spain.

Queen consort of France

In 1526, Eleanor was engaged to King Francis I of France during his
captivity in Spain. They finally married on 4 July 1530. They had no
children.

On 31 May 1531, Eleanor was crowned Queen of France at Saint Denis.
However she was ignored by Francis, he preferred his lover Anne de
Pisseleu d'Heilly.

But Eleanor acted as the queen of France at many official occasions
such as the wedding between her stepson Henry and Catherine de'Medici
in 1533. She also performed charity and was praised for this. She also
took her stepdaughters, Madeleine and Margaret into her household to
raise them further.

As Queen of France, Eleanor did not have any political power, but she
was used as a contact between France and the Holy Roman Empire. In
November 1544 she visited her brother Charles in Brussels.

In 1548 Eleanor left France for Brussels, there she witnessed the
abdication of Charles in October 1555 and left for Spain with him and
their sister Mary in August 1556.

Death

Eleanor of Austria, who had been Queen Consort of Portugal and
Queen Consort of Spain died on 25 February 1558 at the age of 59
after an eventful life at Talavera la Real in Spain.



Source pictures: Wikipedia