The Alcázar of Segovia

Before we left Segovia, there was one more sight that we needed to see... the Alcázar.  The word "alcázar" comes from the Arabic language and referred to a fortress.  There are many towns across Spain which have an old castle or palace known as an "alcázar".  The one in Segovia is probably the most famous castle in Spain.

The earliest written record of the Alcázar of Segovia is from the early twelfth century.  Over time it was enlarged and renovated, and it eventually became a favorite residence of the royal family of the kingdom of Castile.  King Juan II, the father of Queen Isabella, added the large tower which dominates the structure.  Isabella was here when she was proclaimed Queen of Castile in 1474.  Later, when Madrid became the capital of Spain, the castle was now longer a royal residence, and for two centuries it was used as a prison.  In 1762 it became the Royal Artillery School, but one century later there was a disastrous fire which destroyed much of the building.  Restoration began in 1882.  Many of the furnishings and much of the decoration are copies of the originals.

Upon arriving at the castle we decided to climb to the top of the tower while we had the energy.

 

The tower has over 150 steps, many of them in a narrow, spiral staircase.

 

The effort, however, is rewarded with a splendid view of Segovia and the surrounding countryside.

  

(photo taken by a kind tourist)

From the tower we could see that storks were nesting in several of the trees below the castle.  With my zoom lens I was able to snap a photo of a pair of storks in their nest.

After descending the tower, we visited the halls of the castle.  It would be nice to imagine that Isabella and Ferdinand actually sat on these thrones, but the originals were destroyed in the fire.  These replicas were built when King Alfonso XIII and his wife visited the Alcázar in 1908.

In the Hall of the Monarchs there is a magnificent frieze which runs all the way around the room.  Polychrome carvings depict all the monarchs of the kingdoms of Asturias, León and Castile... starting with King Pelayo who began the Reconquest of Spain from the Moslems in 711, and going all the way up to Isabella and Ferdinand and their daughter Juana.

 

The ceilings of all the halls are beautifully decorated.

 

 The chapel witnessed the wedding of King Felipe II and Ana of Austria.

One final vista of Segovia before leaving the Alcázar, and heading to the bus station to return to Mádrid.