El Escorial Monastery and Palace, an Lorenzo de El Escorial

El Escorial, the Royal Palace of King Phillip II and the monastic retreat of Hieronymite monks, comprises the most impressive and complete work of Renaissance architecture in Spain. A UNESCO World Heritage site since 1984, the monastery is one of Spain's main cultural attractions, drawing in over 700,000 tourists from around the world each year. Madrid is only 50 kilometres away from the site of the monastery at San Lorenzo, making it Spain's equivalent of Paris's Versailles.

Yet El Escorial is as different from Versailles in style and design as France is from Spain. Its clean, sharp lines and white-washed towers are perfectly laid out in a symmetrical, grid-like pattern, thought to invoke the shape of the grille on which St. Lawrence was martyred. This isn't too far-flung of an idea, considering the King's deeply religious Catholic leanings. He believed strongly in preserving Catholicism in Spain in the face of the rising Protestant movement, and the palace itself was designed in part as a burial place for his father, Pope Charles I.

In addition to its functions as a monastery and palace, El Escorial was also designed to house a royal library and a college. Meticulously planned out and organized by the King, the many different buildings and wings that make up El Escorial flawlessly combine aspects of Renaissance art and architecture. Thanks to generous donations and art conscripted from such renowned 16th century figures as El Greco and Federico Zuccaro, the building is as much a museum of Renaissance art as it is a palace. And the building's décor and design have been just as meticulously maintained since that time, making El Escorial one of the most intact representations of Renaissance design in the world, and certainly the best example in Spain.

El Escorial Monastery

Plaza de España, 1, 28280 El Escorial

Opening Hours

October-March:
Every day 10.00-18.00

April-September:
Every day 10.00-20.00