Alcázar de Toled

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Traveler Retirement Plan - Part 2
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- Oct 10, 2019
- ☀️ 20 °C
- Altitude: 566 m
- Spain Castille-La Mancha Toledo Alcázar de Toled 39.85794, -4.0204739°51’29” N 4°1’14” W
Day 857
Toledo - Alcázar, military museum
October 10, 2019 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C
Before we went to the military museum, I mentioned to Chris that I wasn't sure I would find it as interesting as he would. How wrong was I. We spent 5 hours there and only saw a third of it!

Built at the highest point in the city, the museum is composed of two buildings; the Alcázar, a fortress dating from the 10th century of Abd a-Rahman III, which houses the permanent exhibition of which there are three different itineraries to follow, and a brand new building built around an archaeological site housing the temporary exhibitions, auditorium, cafe and library.

We chose to do the Historical Tour, eight halls over two floors, showcasing the History of the Spanish Army as an integral part of the History of Spain. We also did a little bit of the Thematic Tour by accident when we lost each other!

We started with the Spanish Monarchy 1492 and went right through to the 20th century. The modern museum has been superbly put together with everything well explained in both Spanish and English with plenty of inter-active additional information. Incorporated into the building are live fragments from the Alcázar history such as the Charles V courtyard, Imperial Chapel and stone spiral staircases.

We learned that Toledo was home to the Royal Armoury for bladed, sharp weapons of war. Suddenly the penny dropped, now we understood why so many shops were selling replica swords, daggers and other dangerous, sharp objects!

The History of Spain and its former world glory days was very well explained but in some ways must leave the Spanish visitors disappointed that it isn't the powerhouse it once was.

The Dukes of Medinaceli collection (that we stumbled on by mistake) was a fantastic display of pristine, shiny armour for both man and horse. How those horses could move with all that weight is unbelievable as they wore plenty of armour themselves. It was interesting that many suits of armour were pierced with holes on the right breast plate. No doubt the right-handed jousters they faced were experts.

There were plenty of uniforms to admire and it was noticeable just how short and slight most of the bodies that they adorned were.

By the time an announcement was made advising closing time, we were 'informationed-out' but had thoroughly enjoyed our visit.

We really look forward to our next visit to Toledo to see more of this wonderful place.Read more
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Traveler Spanien Sommer 2022
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- Jun 2, 2022, 6:31pm
- ⛅ 29 °C
- Altitude: 557 m
- Spain Castille-La Mancha Toledo Alcázar de Toled 39.85774, -4.02071739°51’28” N 4°1’15” W
Day 13
"Unser" Parkhaus des Vertrauens
June 2, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C
Immer, wenn wir in Toledo in die Altstadt fuhren, nutzten wir dieses Parkhaus. Es liegt unmittelbar am Militärmuseum im Palast (Alcázar) aus dem 16. Jahrhundert und nahe dem Plaza de Zocodover, von wo aus man wiederum fußläufig zu allem Interessanten in der Altstadt gelangt. Georg musste allerdings auf dem Weg zum meist von uns genutzten oberen Parkdeck auf seinen Kopf aufpassen - ist aber immer gutgegangen.

Garaje Alcázar / Cta. de los Capuchinos, 6 / 45001 ToledoRead more
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Traveler Europe 2023
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- May 17, 2023, 4:07pm
- ☁️ 23 °C
- Altitude: 559 m
- Spain Castille-La Mancha Toledo Alcázar de Toled 39.858333, -4.0239°51’30” N 4°1’12” W
Day 26
Alcazar of Toledo
May 17, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C
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
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Alcázar de Toled, Alcazar de Toled

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