Alcázar Of Toledo

The Alcázar of Toledo is the great fortress that crowns the highest point of the city, on the eastern side of the old town, just above Plaza de Zocodover, and its square outline with four corner towers is one of the defining shapes of Toledo’s skyline. The hill has been fortified since ancient times, and the Roman rulers, the Visigoths and the Muslim rulers all used it, and the Christian kings of Castile kept it as a royal fortress and palace after Alfonso VI conquered the city in 1085. Over the centuries, the building was rebuilt and altered many times, and the structure seen today owes most to the sixteenth century, when the emperor Charles V decided to turn it into a monumental imperial palace. Architects such as Alonso de Covarrubias and later Juan de Herrera, who also worked on the Escorial, designed the main elements, including the grand façade and courtyard.

After the court moved to Madrid in the 1560s, the Alcázar lost its role as a royal residence, and it served as a prison, a silk factory, a school and a military academy in the following centuries. It was damaged in several wars and fires. Its most famous episode took place in 1936, at the start of the Spanish Civil War, when Nationalist officers and cadets held the building against a siege by Republican forces for about two months, and the fortress was devastated by shelling and mines. The siege became a powerful symbol in the propaganda of the Franco regime, and the building was rebuilt in the following years. This history still makes the building a subject of strong feelings, and the exhibition of the siege is part of the visit.

Since 2010, the Alcázar has housed the Museo del Ejército, the Army Museum, which moved from Madrid and displays the military history of Spain. The collections include weapons and armour, uniforms, flags, models, paintings and documents, arranged across several floors that run from the Middle Ages to the present, and they cover topics such as the conquest of the Americas, the wars of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the Napoleonic invasion and the colonial conflicts of the nineteenth century. The displays aim to explain these events in context. Many visitors also come for the views. From the terraces and upper floors, there are broad views over the roofs of Toledo, the cathedral and the loop of the Tagus River far below, and the open landscape beyond.

The museum is open most days and closed on Mondays, with admission set at a modest price and reductions for some groups, so check the current terms. The visit takes about two hours. The Alcázar is a short, steep walk from Plaza de Zocodover, and the Cathedral of Toledo, the Mezquita del Cristo de la Luz and the Synagogue of Santa María la Blanca are all within walking distance.