The Throne of Phillip II of Spain at Aranjuez |
About equal distance from Toledo and Madrid is the town of Arabjuez on the confluence of the Tagus and Jarama. In 1560 it was part of the Royal Estates of the Crown of Spain.
It must have been (and obviously still is) a lavish place, inhabited only by Royalty. How amazing it must have been to walk the rooms. I opine that sometimes we get lost in all things Italian or French, the Czar's Palaces, even Tut's Tomb and overlook the magnificence that was Spain.
How much of this "overlook" came about as a result of our text books that depict the Spanish as the arch enemy; the armada, the poverty of the Gulf of Mexico and the barbarism of the Spanish in general.
Even today with a certain anti-Hispanic tilt to our North American/European/Western Civilization life, we overlook this treasury of civilization.
Just thinking out loud.