One of the
best excursions from Madrid was the royal palace La Granja de san Il defonso
also called ‘Little Versailles’. At one
time a farm stood on the site of this palace which explains its name- ‘La
Granja’ meaning farm in Spanish.
This slate
roofed summer palace was built by King Felipe V, the first Bourbon king of
Spain who came from France (he was the grandson of Louis IV)... He was probably
homesick for France and he modelled this on Versailles, where he spent a large
part of his childhood. The La Granja palace has hints of Moorish design and
some Italian touches as well.
I loved my
morning spent here walking around the extensive grounds, with trees from
different parts of the world including giant sequoias, the spectacular setting
at the foothills of the Sierra
de Guadarrama mountains and visiting the rooms inside, with one hall devoted to
extravagant Flemish tapestries.
Felipe V
got sculptors and designers from Paris who laid out elaborate gardens and 26
ornate sculptures which act as fountains.
The
fountains are all cast from lead so that do not rust, then they are painted
bronze or bleached to look like marble- all of them depict allegories and
mythological characters ranging from
Diana to Apollo.
The King
first built this as a retreat but later it became a focal point of the court.
Photography
was not allowed inside the palace, but I was amazed at the opulence: Carrara
marble, frescoes, huge chandeliers, antique French clocks and 16th
century Flemish tapestries that were woven form gold, silver and silk that they
say took one year of work for just one square meter. The piece de resistance of the collection is
the Honours and Virtues series, based on cartoons by Goya.
The fountains have pools, jets, spouts and
basins and amazingly the original fitting and pipes are still in working
condition- they are turned on certain special days and holiday.
