Markeskua Palace facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Markeskua Palace |
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| Former names | Torre de Isasi |
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| Town or city | Eibar |
The Markeskua Palace, also known as the Tower of Isasi (Isasi Dorrea in Basque), is a beautiful old house from the renaissance period. It's located in the town of Eibar in Spain. This grand building was once home to important noble families.
A Look Back in Time
The Markeskua Palace was built a long, long time ago, in the 1500s. A noble couple, Marquis Martin Lopez Isasi and his wife Domenja Orbea, ordered its construction. Back then, it was built outside the main village, on the road leading to Ermua.
The Isasi family was very important. They held high positions in the Spanish royal court. In 1631, King Philip IV of Spain asked Juan Isasi Idiakez, who was the marquis at the time, to educate his son. This boy, named Francisco Fernando Isidro, lived in the palace from age 4 to 7. Sadly, he passed away in 1634.
A few months later, in November 1634, King Philip IV again trusted the marquis. He asked him to educate his other son, Balthasar Charles, who was the heir to the throne. However, it seems Balthasar Charles never actually lived at the Markeskua Palace. He also died young, at age 16, but in a different city called Zaragoza.
For a long time, starting in the 1700s, a group of nuns lived in the palace. Later, in the late 1900s, the nuns moved out. After that, a school that taught in the Basque language, called an ikastola, used the building.
In the 2000s, the city council fixed up the palace. Since the year 2000, it has been the main home for the Basque Summer University. This is a special university that offers courses in the Basque language.
What the Palace Looks Like
The Markeskua Palace is a large building with a square shape. Its roof slopes down on all four sides. On its left side, there's a smaller building attached.
The sides and back of the palace are made of rough stone. The front of the palace, which is the main part you see, is built with carefully cut stone blocks. The top edges of the walls have a wooden overhang with decorative carvings.
The palace has a ground floor and three upper floors. On the ground floor, there are three openings. The main entrance is in the middle. It's a round arch made of special sandstone blocks. On either side of this arch, there are two windows with flat tops and frames around them.
Between the first and second floors, right in the middle of the front, you can see the Isasi family's coat of arms. It's quite large and has two lions on either side.
The right side of the palace has two windows on the ground floor, also with flat tops and frames. The main front of the palace has three windows on each floor, all with flat tops and frames. On the left side, on the ground floor, there's an entrance with a flat top. A decorative band separates the different floors. On the first floor, there are two more windows with flat tops and frames.
See also
In Spanish: Palacio de Markeskua para niños
