Calle de Alcalá

The current City Hall of Madrid is the Communications Palace or "Palacio de las Comunicaciones". It is a magnificent building situated along the south side of the Cibeles Square. In 2007 the building was transformed into the new home of Madrid's city council.

Even though Madrid's city hall looks like a high-gothic cathedral, it was originally built in the early 20th century as the main office of the Spanish postal service, hence its name Communications Palace. It continued to serve that purpose for about a century until November 2007 when it took over the function of city hall from the much less impressive "Casa de la Villa" at the Plaza de la Villa Square.

Erected in 1778 by Italian architect Francesco Sabatini, this triumphal gate was once the main entrance to the city. It was commissioned by King Charles III - over time nicknamed the Best Mayor of Madrid -, who was unimpressed by the gate that welcomed him when he first arrived in 1759. It is situated next to El Retiro Park in the centre of Plaza de la Independencia, a junction for three of the city’s most well-known streets: Calle de Alcalá, the city’s longest road, Calle de Alfonso XII, which leads to Atocha train station, and Calle de Serrano, Madrid’s most glamorous thoroughfare.

Designed by Sabatini, Puerta de Alcalá is a neoclassical triumphal arch made of granite. It was the first of its kind to be built after the fall of the Roman Empire, making it even older than Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate or the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Unlike the smaller Puerta de Toledo and Puerta de San Vicente gates, which are also located in the centre of the city, Puerta de Alcalá has a total of five arches, not three.

Each side of the gate has a different design. The one looking towards the city centre is crowned by sculptures of war trophies such as flags, weapons, breastplates and helmets, and its three rounded arches are decorated with the head of a lion. The other side, which is the one travellers would first behold when they arrived in the city, is more ornately decorated and is crowned by the royal coat of arms held up by Fame helped by a child. Along the top of the gate, you’ll find the figures of four children that are an allegory of the cardinal virtues: fortitude, justice, temperance and prudence.

The gate was given the name Puerta de Alcalá because it was on the road that led to Alcalá de Henares, Cervantes’ hometown.

The Puerta de Toledo gate was built to commemorate the arrival in Madrid of Fernando VII, 'the Desired One'. It appears that the project for the gate was carried out under the reign of José Bonaparte, although the return of Fernando VII to the throne put it on halt; its construction was later entrusted to Antonio López Aguado. López Aguado used granite and stone from Colmenar to build a gate in Neo-Roman style and it was completed in 1827. With three arches, two lateral square arches and one central semi-circular arch, the Puerta de Toledo gate has openings flanked by half-columns with Ionic capitals in the central arch and Ionic pilasters in the others. On the side facing the Manzanares River, a group of sculptures made by Valeriano Salvatierra and Ramón Barba was installed above the central arch. These sculptures represent the power of the Spanish monarchy on both hemispheres. Also on this side, in the upper part of the other two arches, several military trophies were placed. Finally, on the opposite side of the monument, two angels support the emblem of the City of Madrid.

Very nice area and representative of Madrid

Kunjungi Calle de Alcalá

Activities

Tur wisata satu hari

Lihat total 147 aktivitas

Tur Sehari ke Toledo, Segovia & Kunjungan Opsional ke Avila - 3 Kota dalam ...

Tersedia pembatalan gratis

Makanan, Minuman, & Hiburan Malam

Lihat total 31 aktivitas

Madrid: Pertunjukan Flamenco Langsung "Emociones"

Tersedia pembatalan gratis

Cicipi Madrid: Jalan-jalan Kelompok Kecil Tur dengan Tapas, Minuman & Rahas...

Tersedia pembatalan gratis

Tur Pribadi & Khusus

Lihat total 24 aktivitas

Toledo dengan Katedral - Tur Sehari Penuh dari Madrid dengan Makan Siang Op...

Tersedia pembatalan gratis

Objek Wisata

Lihat total 15 aktivitas

Madrid dalam Sehari, termasuk Melewati Antrean ke Istana Kerajaan & Museum ...

Tersedia pembatalan gratis

Petualangan & Outdoor

Lihat total 5 aktivitas

Madrid Tur Kota Pribadi oleh Eco Tuk Tuk

Tersedia pembatalan gratis

Tempat populer untuk dikunjungi

Church of San Manuel y San Benito which includes a park, a sunset and flowers

Gereja San Manuel y San Benito

Gereja San Manuel y San Benito adalah salah satu tempat untuk dikunjungi di Madrid, maka kenapa tidak menikmati hal lain untuk dijelajahi selama perjalanan Anda? Nikmati museum yang memukau dan galeri seni yang populer di area dinamis ini.

Danau Taman Retiro

Berinteraksi dengan alam dan jelajahi aktivitas outdoor di Danau Taman Retiro selama perjalanan Anda di Madrid. Nikmati museum yang memukau di area dapat ditempuh dengan berjalan kaki ini.

Monumen Alfonso XII

Anda dapat mengetahui sejarah dari Madrid saat Anda mampir ke Monumen Alfonso XII. Jelajahi panggung teater yang ternama dan toko di area dinamis ini.

Puerta de Alcala featuring flowers, heritage architecture and night scenes

Puerta de Alcalá

Kunjungi gerbang megah yang dulunya merupakan pintu masuk timur Spanyol, namun kini merupakan simbol kota metropolis ini.

Puerta de Alcala featuring night scenes and heritage architecture

Milla de Oro

Selama Anda mengunjungi Madrid, Anda dapat menikmati terapi belanja di Milla de Oro. Saat berada di area kaya budaya ini, Anda dapat menikmati bar yang ramai.

Casa Arabe

Nikmati tamasya ke Casa Arabe selama Anda menginap di Madrid. Jelajahi panggung teater yang ternama dan toko di area dinamis ini.

Opsi Penginapan Terbaik Dekat Calle de Alcalá

Cek ketersediaan hotel di dekat Calle de Alcalá

Hotel Riu Plaza España

C/ Gran Via, 84 Madrid

Hotel Regina

Alcala 19 Madrid Madrid

H10 Puerta de Alcalá 4* Sup

Alcala, 66 Madrid Madrid

Only YOU Hotel Atocha

Paseo Infanta Isabel 13 Madrid

Hotel Gran Versalles

Covarrubias 4 Madrid Madrid

Live It Gran Via

Calle Gran Vía 36 Madrid

Hotel Emperador

Gran Via 53 Madrid Madrid

Barceló Torre de Madrid

Plaza de España, 18 Madrid

Only YOU Boutique Hotel

Calle Barquillo, 21 Madrid Madrid

Lihat total 6.230 properti di Calle de Alcalá

Harga per malam terendah yang ditemukan dalam 24 jam terakhir berdasarkan pencarian 1 malam untuk 2 tamu dewasa. Harga dan ketersediaan dapat berubah sewaktu-waktu. Ketentuan tambahan dapat berlaku.