Taking place entirely in Madrid, this Study-Abroad Honor program focuses on the city’s historical, artistic, and architectural development under the Habsburgs, the dynasty that ruled the Spanish monarchy as a global empire. While delivery of the curriculum is fully integrated, students will register for two, 3-credit Honor Courses: “HONR 299—Madrid: Court and Capital of Spain’s Global Empire” and “HIST 302H—The Spanish Habsburgs, 1500-1700.” Our journey begins with an exploration of Madrid’s medieval Arabic foundations and follows with understanding its development into a fully Renaissance city when the Habsburgs adopted it as their permanent residence in the sixteenth century. Then, we will delve into the Madrid that became the paragon of baroque culture in the seventeenth century and experience it through the eyes of the rulers and inhabitants of the past. We will walk through the same areas in a city famous for extreme fashion styles, popular festivities, and aristocratic carriage-drawn outings in the parks, and recreate some of the most common activities that Madrid residents—madrileños—adopted, such as consuming new and fun foods like chocolate in the Plaza Mayor. All of these activities took place in today’s paradigmatic tourist destinations and have been immortalized in the magisterial art left behind by the likes of Rembrandt, Titian, and Velazquez. Visits to the Royal Palace, the Plaza Mayor, the Plaza del Oriente, the Retiro Park, and the Casa del Campo as well as finding art in the most important museums, such as the Prado, but also in less visited churches and buildings sprinkled in the old areas of the city, will be the lens through which we will appreciate the artistic, cultural, and power structures that helped make Madrid one of the most cosmopolitan cities of the time. The course includes day trips to nearby cities—Segovia, Toledo, El Escorial, and Aranjuez—to provide additional perspectives and points of comparison. Adopting Madrid as a classroom, this course provides a unique experience of the Habsburgs’ splendid artistic, cultural, and historical legacy.
The Crystal Palace in the Retiro Park
An example of a "classroom": The Retiro Park, one of the most popular destinations for anyone visiting Madrid was initially built by Philip IV as a pleasure palace; although the initial building did not survive, the gardens continue to provide an illydic setting for an afternoon stroll, sightseeing, and a host of fun outdoor activities. For us, it will also be an opportunity to think about how inhabitants of the city experienced it.
Please contact program leader for more information: Silvia Z. Mitchell, mitch131@purdue.edu
Professor Mitchell is a leading expert of the history of the Spanish monarchy in the seventeenth century and the royal House of Habsburgs. For more information about her research and publications, clicke here: Silvia Z. Mitchell