Architectural description
Palacio de Carlos V
CONSTRUCTION PERIOD: 1526-1568 | 1580-end of XVIth century | 1923-1958.
STYLE: Renaissance.
FUNCTION: Royal palace.
CATALOGATION: UNESCO World Heritage Site
Emperor Charles V commissioned this project on the condition of respecting the Nasrid palaces and revitalizing them with the new building. To represent his ideals visually, he chose a language based on classical Roman art, used in the Italian sixteenth century.
The floor plan of the building was designed from two perfect geometric figures: in a square there is a circular courtyard formed by 32 columns. On the northwest side is a palatine chapel of octagonal plan. The palace has two levels of height. On the façade, the lower one is of Tuscan order where you can see the cushioning and the upper one is of Ionic order where pilasters alternate with lintelated spaces.