To spot the Palace of Villalegre, look for a large, stately building of reddish brick with a grand stone doorway, iron balconies, a dramatic family crest above the entrance, and two prominent towers rising above the rooftops right across from the old Royal Hospital.
Imagine yourself back in the 1500s, standing where grand carriages would have clattered up to this impressive palace. The Fernández de Córdoba family once called this place home, filling it with lively parties and heavy secrets-but as years rolled by, the palace switched owners, tumbling into the hands of the Marquess of Villalegre in 1685. Picture the sound of guards’ boots on the stone floors when the building became a Civil Guard barracks, or the cries of neighbors gossiping in the shared patio when it was turned into a busy apartment house with laundry fluttering in the wind. The towers you see? Locals say they were perfect for spying on the whole town-or maybe just to see who was first to get to the market! Today, if you listen closely through those heavy wooden doors, you might still catch a whisper of ancient rivalry or a burst of laughter from the town offices within. What a journey this palace has had-no wonder its walls look like they’ve seen everything.
