PUERTA DE ALCALÁ

Description

Essentials about Puerta de Alcalá in brief

Puerta de Alcalá (Alcalá Gate) is one of Madrid’s landmarks. Once located in Plaza de la Independencia, it was one of the five city gates of Madrid. Even today, Puerta de Alcalá is one of the traffic hubs of the Spanish capital. In Plaza de la Independencia, Calle de Alcalá, the main entrance road from the east, intersects with Calle Alfonso XII and Calle Serrano.

The history of Puerta de Alcalá

Puerta de Alcalá was commissioned by King Charles III at the end of the 18th century to replace the old 16th century city gate on the same site, which was already in a ruinous state at the time. The name of the gate comes from its former location on the road to Alcalá de Henares.

The master builder of the 44-meter wide and 22-meter high classicist granite gate was Francesco Sabatini. The works were carried out in the period from 1770 to 1778. At that time there was still a fence on both sides of the gate, which was supposed to protect Madrid against unwanted intruders. With the design of Plaza de la Independencia in 1869, the enclosure disappeared.

The architecture of Puerta de Alcalá

Puerta de Alcalá was the first triumphal arch of its kind after the fall of the Roman Empire and thus became the model for subsequent triumphal arches throughout Europe, such as Brandenburg Gate in Berlin and the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Unlike Madrid’s other two city gates, Puerta de Toledo and Puerta de San Vicente, Puerta de Alcalá has five openings instead of the usual three. The three main arches, with lion heads guarding them, were once reserved for carts. The two outer rectangular arches, surmounted by reliefs, served pedestrians.

The two facades of the gatehouse have different decorations. The more simply designed (western) side facing the city center, depicts the four virtues of justice, temperance, fortitude and wisdom. The (eastern) outer side, which was once first seen by travelers on their way to Madrid, is accordingly more elaborately decorated with columns and the royal coat of arms. In the center on the attic is a stone with the Latin inscription “Charles III in 1778”.