Buenavista Palace

Originally the residence of the Dukes of Alba, the Buenavista Palace is a large building located on a landscaped promontory near the Plaza de Cibeles. It was built in 1767 on the royal estate known as Altillo de Buenavista, purchased in 1769 by the twelfth Duke of Alba. On June 24, 2025, the building was declared a Site of Cultural Interest (BIC), in the category of monument. It was the thirteenth Duchess of Alba who ordered the demolition of the existing building and commissioned the architect Pedro de Arnal to design the current palace. Arnal's project, completed in 1777, synthesizes Italian and French architectural styles, with an urban façade facing north. This palace housed numerous works of art, such as Velázquez's Venus at her Mirror (National Gallery, London) and Raphael's Alba Madonna (National Gallery of Art, Washington). During the reign of Ferdinand VII, it was intended to house the Royal Museum of Paintings (now the Prado Museum), but it was ultimately ceded to the army. When the title of the House of Alba passed to the Berwick lineage, the Alba residence in Madrid was moved to the Liria Palace, and this building became the headquarters of the Ministry of War in 1847. Since then, it has undergone numerous renovations and expansions to become what it is today: the headquarters of the Army General Staff, where the Changing of the Guard ceremony takes place on the last Friday of each month.