Alcazar of Toledo

We had a burger on an inviting terrace near a film about Toledo that we decided to take in. The film was 15 minutes (€3.5 each), was a good overview re basic timeline although even Nancy had it down (Celtic-iberians, then Romans, then Visigoths, then the Moors, then Christians recapturing the area. Narrator had a rather monotone voice and Doug nodded off. After this we went to the Alcazar, very impressive sitting at the top of the hill....it was under renovation so we saw very little, the most interesting was the escalator taking us up over the archaeological excavations extending up to the top and going through the foundations of the various groups who had built one on top the other. We were finished ahead of schedule so lots of time to get to the train for return to Madrid at 8 pm.

Toledo has been a site of great importance to the history of Spain and the Alcázar was the political and military heart of the city. The city of Toledo was declared the capital of Spain in 1519 and remained as such until 1561 and during this time the Alcázar of Toledo was essentially the country's main government building. The Alcázar was the site where Charles I received the “conquistador” Hernán Cortés after he returned from South America having conquered the Aztec empire.

The Romans first built a garrison on the site where the Alcázar stands at the highest point in the city. The current structure was first developed following restoration by the Christians, particularly by Alfonso VI and Alfonso X “the Wise”. The Alcazar burnt down in 1710 and during the French invasion, it was also burnt in 1810. It took a bit of time to rebuild the fortress and reconstruction started in 1862 and ended in 1882. But yet again fire destroyed the building in 1887, only five years after having been rebuilt!

During the Spanish Civil War, the Alcázar was again a site of great strategic value and was used as a military base. The Alcázar was the focal point of an infamous siege during this time when troops loyal to General Franco barricaded themselves within the citadel and held off Republican troops for 2 months until re-enforcements arrived. Most of the fortifications had to be rebuilt after the conflict because of the damage the building received.

The building of the Alcazar is now used to hold the permanent exhibition of the army museum, but it was closed for renovations.Read more