Francesco Sabatini He was the favorite architect of King Charles III, and is the author of such emblematic works of Madrid such as the Puerta de Alcalá, that of San Vicente, the Royal Palace, San Francisco el Grande or the San Carlos Hospital. The capital would not be what it is without his works, and that is why, in 2021, the city council is preparing a great tribute to his figure on the 300th anniversary of his birth. In De Salas We wanted to go ahead and pay our particular tribute so that our clients and friends can value, even more, the city through which they walk.
Born in Palermo in 1721, at that time belonging to the kingdom of Naples and Sicily, he arrived in Spain when Charles III came to the throne in 1760, who was Charles VII of Naples and who was crowned King of Spain on the death of Louis I and Ferdinand. VI, without offspring. The new monarch, who would go down in history as one of those who did the most for Madrid, he sent for Sabatini to make him Senior Master of the Royal Works. In fact, most of his new construction works are located in the community of Madrid except for some such as the church of Santa Ana, in Valladolid, or the Royal Arms Factory of Toledo.
Trained in the most classic and rational Baroque, little by little his creative concept was refined towards Neoclassicism, thanks to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando, an institution that regulated the artistic creation of the court. People say that Sabatini, for his architectural projects, instead of taking Classical Antiquity as a reference, which was very current in those years, he used the Renaissance balance, which he was able to experience first-hand in his years in Rome.
Among his most notable works, we find the Royal Palace de Madrid, initially commissioned to Sacchetti but when Charles III arrived, he passed it on to Sabatini. Its majesty, its pristine white, the spaciousness and elegance of its rooms or its gardens, are a must-see place in the capital and one of the most beautiful and photographed places.
Royal Customs House, currently the Ministry of Economy and Finance, is on Alcalá Street, and its construction was inspired by the model of an Italian urban palace from the Renaissance. On its main façade, the padded facing of the lower body draws attention. He Convent of the Commanders It was remodeled in 1774 by himself Sabatini, who would reorganize the surroundings of the building, integrating dependencies into the convent complex that were not convents and surrounded the block.
La Puerta de Alcalá, one of the symbols of Madrid, located in the Plaza de la Independencia and which is inspired by the ancient Roman triumphal arches. It consists of a central semicircular opening, crowned by a pediment and an inscription dedicated to the monarch, with the date of construction. We also owe him the wonderful Cathedral of Saint Francis the Great, with the third largest diameter circular dome in Christendom and a spectacle to behold.
El Godoy Palace, el Botanical Garden, Plaza Mayor, the tombs of Fernando VI and Bárbara de Braganza, the convent of Saint Pascual of Aranjuez, decidedly Madrid It wouldn't be what it is without Francesco Sabatini, and while the tribute is being prepared, deserved by the pertinent authorities, in De Salas We have taken note of his works to explore them, now with perhaps a slightly more critical eye.
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