Palma - Palacio Real de La Almudaina

Mallorca is the largest island in the Mediterranean Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain. Mallorca is an extremely popular holiday destination. The Palma de Mallorca Airport, one of the busiest in Spain, is used by about 30 million tourists per year.

Palma is the political and economic centre of the autonomous region of the Balearic Islands. Palma is a Roman foundation from the time the island was occupied by the Roman Empire in 123 BC. Almost half of the island´s population of more than 890.000 today live in Palma.

From Between 902 and 1229 the city was under Islamic control. It was conquered after three months of siege in December 1229 by the troops of James I of Aragon ( aka "Jaume el Conqueridor"). Palma became the capital of the Kingdom of Majorca. After Jame´s death, Palma became joint capital of the Kingdom, together with Perpignan. The Aragonese expanded the city, so that at its heyday in the 16th century it had around 40,000 inhabitants.

La Almudaina, the Royal Palace, is located next to the cathedral. Already the Romans had a fortified place here, the current castle is a modification of the Muslim alcázar begun in 1281. After the conquest, it was rebuilt in 1309 by King James II of Mallorca. The palace hosted the monarchs of the Kingdom of Mallorca, the Aragonese monarchs and Spanish monarchs successively.