Maps and drawings of the royal sites around the Guadarrama Mountain range

Abstract

Many roads which still cross the Sierra Guadarrama have since the time of the Roman Empire served as communication routes between the two plateaux located in the center of Spain. Somosierra, Navacerrada, La Fuenfría and Guadarrama came into use in the period between the Middle Ages and the 18th century as necessary mountain passes on the route from Bayonne (France) to Madrid and Andalusia. They were progressively improved by the Bourbon kings, as was reflected in Spanish maps. Due to their strategic location, they played an important role during the Peninsular War and were therefore mapped by both French and British cartographers. Together with the maps compiled before and after the war, these maps, most of them unpublished and located in Spanish archives, comprise a collection of great interest. The aim of this research is 1/ to study and disseminate this important collection, 2/ to analyse the collaboration of Spanish cartographers with their European colleagues throughout the 18th century, and 3/ to analyse the influence of this cartography on post-war maps.

Keywords

• cartografía histórica
• sitios reales
• monasterio de el escorial
• la granja de san ildefonso