El Escorial - Royal Monastery and Palace of the Escorial

(Local Name: Monasterio de San Lorenzo) After the battle of Saint-Quentin on August 10 1557 (St Lawrence's Day), in which Spanish troops defeated the French, Philip II vowed to build a monastery dedicated to St Lawrence. After careful preparations, including the consultation of astrologers, the little town of San Lorenzo was chosen as the site of a huge complex which was to include a monastery, a church, a royal palace, a mausoleum, a library and a museum and was conceived as a monument to Philip and his reign. Work began on April 23, 1563 and was completed on September 13, 1584 in the presence of Philip himself, who had closely supervised the whole operation. The architects were Juan Bautista de Toledo, who died in 1567, and Juan de Herrera. The decoration was the work of numerous Spanish painters, and a major part was also played by Italian masters, including Pellegrino Tibaldi, Luca Giordano and the sculptors Pompeo and Leone Leoni.