Royal House of the Post Office
| Royal House of the Post Office | |
|---|---|
Real Casa de Correos | |
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 | |
| General information | |
| Location | Puerta del Sol 7, Madrid, Spain |
| Completed | 1768 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Jaime Marquet |
The House of the Post Office (Spanish: Real Casa de Correos) is an eighteenth century building in Puerta del Sol, Madrid. It was built for the postal service, but currently serves as the office of the President of the Community of Madrid, the head of the regional government of the Autonomous Community of Madrid. This should not to be confused with the Madrid City Council, which is housed in another former post office, the Palacio de Cibeles.
History
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In the 17th century there were some thirty two-storey houses in the area currently occupied by the Royal House of the Post Office.[1] In the 1750s the area was cleared as part of the development of the Puerta del Sol square. A plan for a head post office was produced by the Spanish architect Ventura Rodríguez. However, Ventura Rodríguez, who enjoyed the patronage of Ferdinand VI, lost favour when Charles III came to the throne in 1760. The House of the Post Office was designed by French architect Jacques Marquet.[2] Work on the building began in the late 1760s.
The building was the headquarters of the Ministry of Interior and State Security in Francoist Spain.
Clock tower
On top of the building is a clock inaugurated in 1866 by Queen Isabel II. Its bells mark the traditional eating of the Twelve Grapes and the beginning of a new year in most of Spain (the Canary Islands are in a different time zone).
References
- ^ Carmen de Burgos (Colombine), (1919), Los Negociantes de la Puerta del Sol, La novela corta, Año IV, Nº 195
- ^ "Real Casa de Correos". Retrieved 25 October 2016.
External links
