Madrid - Museo Reina Sofía

Madrid is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. Madrid is part of the historical landscape of Castile and is located in the middle of the Meseta, the plateau of Castile.



The site of modern-day Madrid has been occupied since prehistoric times. The first document about the existence of an established settlement in Madrid dates from the Muslim age. In the second half of the 9th century Umayyad Emir Muhammad I built a fortress here. After the disintegration of the Caliphate of Córdoba in the early 11th century, Madrid was integrated into the Taifa of Toledo. In 1083, Madrid was conquered by the Kingdom of Castile. In 1309, under Fernando IV, the Assembly of Estates (Cortes) of the Kingdom of Castile was convened for the first time in Madrid.



In 1561, Philip II moved the royal court from Valladolid to Madrid. It became the de facto capital of Spain, which it remains to this day. In 1701 the War of the Spanish Succession broke out, which led to the Anglo-Portuguese occupation of the city in 1706. It ended in 1714 with the Bourbons taking over the Spanish throne. Today's royal palace was built under their rule. Particularly during the reign of Charles III, who is therefore popularly referred to as the “best mayor of Madrid”, the city's public infrastructure was modernized and numerous public buildings were built.

The building is located on the site of the first General Hospital of Madrid. Carlos III had founded the hospital, which first opened in 1788 but proved too small for the growing city. After numerous work interruptions, the “New Hospital” was inaugurated in 1805. Since then it has been rebuilt and expanded several times until it closed as a hospital in 1969. From 1980 onwards, extensive modern renovations and extensions were carried out on the old building. The museum's central building was once an 18th-century hospital. The building functioned as the Centro del Arte from 1986 until its founding as the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in 1988.

As a national museum, it collects and displays the art of Spanish artists or artists associated with Spain.

Margarita Azurdia / 1931 - 1998 /