Madrid

For centuries Madrid was an insignificant settlement on the central Iberian plateau . Under its Muslim rulers the town was fortified and enlarged, but even after the Reconquista it remained secondary to nearby Toledo. But Madrid s fortunes dramatically shifted in the sixteenth century, becoming the centre of a vast global empire. Luke Stegemann tells the surprising story of Madrid s flourishing, and its outsize influence across the world. From Cervantes and Quevedo to Vel á zquez and Goya, Spain s capital has been home to some of Europe s most influential artists and thinkers. It formed a vital link between Europe and the Americas and b ecame a cauldron of political dissent not least during the Spanish Civil War, when the city was on the frontline in the fight against fascism.