Monastery of the Royal Barefoot Nuns

Built by Antonio Sillero and later by Juan Bautista de Toledo between 1559 and 1564 as a Poor Clare monastery, it occupies the former palace where Charles I and Isabella of Portugal resided and where their daughter, Juana of Austria, who later founded the convent, was born in 1535. She herself is buried in a chapel, with a funerary sculpture of her in prayer created by Pompeo Leoni. Architecturally, the Plateresque façade and the magnificent Renaissance staircase are the most interesting original features. The interior was completely renovated in the 18th century by Diego de Villanueva. The cloister preserves the structure and many decorative elements of the Plateresque palace. In this monastery, currently managed by Patrimonio Nacional (National Heritage), lived Doña Juana and later her sister María, the widowed empress, who died here in 1603. From the 17th century, fresco paintings are preserved in the staircase and in the Chapel of the Miracle. The tapestries woven in Brussels from Rubens' cartoons depicting the Apotheosis of the Eucharist are particularly noteworthy. They were commissioned for this monastery by Philip II's daughter, Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia, Governor of the Netherlands. The Monastery has been listed as a Site of Cultural Interest and was also named European Museum of the Year in 1987. Its latest renovation, undertaken during the forced closure due to the pandemic in 2020 and 2021, has allowed for a major museographic renewal affecting eight of its rooms. This includes the restoration of more than 50 works, the incorporation of pieces from the cloister, and the installation of a new LED lighting system.