Madrid - Torre de los Lujanes

Opposite the Town Hall is the Torre de los Lujanes, with the Municipal Newspaper Archives adjoining it. These are the oldest buildings in the square.

The house and tower of the Lujanes are among the few civil buildings surviving from 15th-16th C. Madrid, and the entrance doorway with the owner's coat of arms is one of the few Gothic remnants in the city.

After being taken prisoner at the Battle of Pavia in 1525 King Francis I of France was confined in the Torre de los Lujanes; but Charles V allowed this "prisoner" considerable liberty, and Francis was able to move freely about Madrid and attend the festivals and banquets which the nobility of Castile gave in his honor.