Royal Alcazar, an authentic ‘Game of Thrones’
The Royal Alcázar of Seville is one of the three World Heritage listed monuments in the city and it is a truly unique landmark to visit. Alcázar, an Arabic origin word, refers to palace, and here we are digging in what it is considered the oldest royal palace still in use in whole Europe.
The origins of this complex go back to the fortress built after a Norse barbarians’ invasion of the Moorish city of Seville in year 844 aD. From that time this became the official residence of governors, rulers and kings.
We should face our visit to the Alcázar open minded so we will deeply immerse ourselves getting to know the mixture of cultures, religions, patterns, materials and architecture styles that this palace is consisting of. In 12 centuries of history many things change and all these changes are present in the Alcázar, it is also interesting to see how, being these palaces always used by rulers, they were adapting them to new necessities and decoration styles of their different periods.
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Seville was a Muslim city until 1248aD, and the oldest part of the palace belongs to that period but what is really fascinating for the great public is the mudéjar palace, new residence built in 1360s by king Peter I.
Mudéjar is the name given to those Muslims allowed to stay in the area after the Christian reconquest and the style used by these Muslim artisans and workers at the service of Christian elites. Materials, patterns, even inscriptions will remind you to those structures only found in northern Africa or the middle east, but these are considered Christian buildings. Peter I used this palace as his residence so he also included the symbols of his kingdoms and religion all over the place mixed with verses of the Quran.
The most impressive areas of the palace of Peter I are without doubt the Ambassadors Hall and the Maidens courtyard. The first floor of the palace cannot be visited as it is reserved for the Spanish Royal family, don’t forget this palace is still in use.
Apart from the Mudejar palace, it is also interesting to walk around the building of “Casa de la Contratación”, the house of trade used for over two centuries as a logistic centre for everything regarding the new world, as well as the gothic palace, the first Christian structure in the complex and obviously the magnificent gardens and the bathrooms of María de Padilla inside of them.
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Precisely these gardens and the bathrooms, together with the Ambassadors room of Peter I palace were used as a set of Game of Thrones. During the fifth season, the Alcázar was chosen as the Kingdom of Dorne, perfect election as no special effects were needed in the series, the set itself was already breathtaking.
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The land of house Martell is a southern peninsula, it seems George RR Martin was already thinking about Spain when he wrote his books. The Alcazar hosts some of the most important scenes of the fifth season, with the conspiracy and murder of the prince of house Martell, the arrival of Jamie Lannister to rescue his daughter and the fight of Jamie and Bronn against Dornish soldier in the Watergardens.
Being chosen as a set for such a successful series as Game of Throne was a perfect marketing campaign for the Alcázar. The number of visitors has been increasing in the last few years, getting to 2.2 million in 2019.
If you are planning to visit Seville, here’s our recommended experience at the Alcázar, enjoy this breathtaking palace in a small group guided tour, don’t worry about getting tickets in advance, skip the line and discover the history of magnificent Alcazar.
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