When Madrid comes into the 19th century, the
king is Carlos IV and the mayor is Juan de Morales Guzmán y Tovar.
The capital of Spain faces up to a new
century, with the need to order the urban development that the Villa demands, so
its population growth so the power of attraction that it had started to exert.
It continues the ornamental alterations.
Into the Salón del Prado was installed the Apollo fountain and, close to
it, starts the construction site of the Linares palace. It is found out a court
intrigue against the king Carlos IV and he gives the order to arrest to the
Prince of Asturias, who is taken to El Escorial, a town near Madrid
The development of the Villa has to wait.
The year of 1808 is a dramatic year. The king abdicates. The population of
Aranjuez incite to rebellion against Godoy, favourite of the king, lover of the
queen and suspect to hold the regency. The French troops were to come in from
Chamartin with José Bonaparte at the front.
On March 18th, 1808, the madrilenian mayor's
office announces an edict in which it prays to all the madrilenian population
that treat to the French army "with frankness,
friendship and good faith". In March 24th arrives to Madrid Joaquin
Murat, deputy of Napoleón Bonaparte in Spain.
The next day, Fernando VII makes his
official entry in the Villa as the king. In April 10th, the new monarch travels
to Bayonne (France) to have a meeting with Napoleón.
In May 1st, the Village of Madrid is
preparing the great resistance. Murat is whistled in the streets and the next
day the protest against the French army is generalized. The resistance, the
armed fight, is going to be difficult. There are only 4.000 soldiers of the
royal troops and 4.500 of garrison in Madrid.
At nine o'clock of May 2nd, in front of the
palace, there are concentrated more than two thousand madrilenian ready to rise
up in arms against the invaders. Suddenly, the French army opened fire, shooting
with two pieces of artillery against the crowd. It starts the first battle.
The Village of Madrid fights as it could,
with a minimum of arms, in the streets of Bailén, Mayor, Santo Domingo
and in the Puerta del Sol. A group of madrilenians arrive to the palace of
Monteleón, which is artillery depot, where the captain Daoiz comes.
Another captain, Velarde, convinces to the
volunteers' colonel, Esteban Giráldez, to let go out to a military
company, at the head of it is going the lieutenant Ruiz. They get that the
artillery depot stir up and put the arms at the disposal of the Village.
In Monteleón, it happens a heroic
resistance of sixty militaries and one hundred fifty civil people. Near two
thousand French soldiers overcome the resistance in less than one hour. Passing
the noon, the French army break the resistance of the courageous madrilenians.
In the streets where it had happened the
cruelest clashes, it was scattered more than a thousand corpses. The fight
journal has been as heroic as useless.
French army do not forgive the nerve of the
madrilenians who has risen up in arms during the historic day of May 2nd and, in
the dawn of the next day, it starts the executions of prisoners.
The Salón del Prado, the courtyard of
the Buen Suceso, the gates of El Retiro and also the one of Segovia, the Casa de
Campo and the Moncloa are stages of the executions that the painter Francisco de
Goya gives expression into a heartbreaking canvas. Until May 5th, the executions
of the madrilenians that started the rebellion were made at dawn.
"Execution
on May 3rd, 1808"
Canvas painted by Francisco de Goya - Prado Museum
In July 20th, enter in Madrid José
Bonaparte, brother of Napoleón, to take charge of the throne of Spain. In
only ten days he abandoned Madrid, temporarily, when having news of the defeat
of the French army in the battle of Bailén.
In December 2nd, the French king camped in
the near village of Chamartín de la Rosa. Two days after, Madrid
surrenders due to the French king's threats.
When José Bonaparte, proclaimed
himself as king, installs in the palace of Bailén street, Madrid has
suffered a very important loss of projection and advance since the death of king
Carlos III. Madrid is a city where the mark of the modernity is shown
exclusively in the Salón del Prado and in the Retiro.
Its streets are narrow, bad paved and
lighting poorly. It running shorts the theatres, there are not decorous squares
and the sidewalks, as well as the streets with a good pavement are shorts. The
noise and the dirt are usual.
The five gates of the city walls are closed
at ten o'clock in winter and one hour after in summer. The Puerta del Sol is the
point where are concentrated the unemployed people, the water carriers and the
muleteers. The rains converts the streets in streams, generally stinking.
It is organized travelling markets, where
the immaculate and the quality products are conspicuous. But it is plentiful of
taverns, brothels and inns.
The water supply is made through water
carriers, despite of exist several canalizations, and the madrilenians only
provide of five litres per person and day. It growths the number of public baths
because the houses lack of its.
The frenzy of the pickaxe have not been
stopped and in spite of the French invasion and the destructions caused in the
architectonic patrimony of Madrid by the invader artillery, the own Council
permits the demolition of churches and convents.
It stands out the church of Santiago, in the
square of its own name, the church of San Martin, today square and street of the
same name, the church of San Miguel, actually square and market and the church
of San Juan situated in Plaza de Ramales, among others.
In the church of San Juan, it was buried the
great painter Velázquez. With its demolition, the remains of the painter
were lost. Actually, it is being carried out some excavations in order to find
the foundations of the church and so that, the underground crypt where, as it is
believed, the remains of Velázquez rests.
The destructive pickaxe arrived, just like
that, to some convents, such us the nuns Carmelites of Santa Ana. and the monks
Premostratenses of San Norberto. Both gave rise to squares so knowing such as
Santa Ana and to the Mostenses.
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& JRP
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