Madrid Madrid Madrid (, ) is the capital of Spain and the largest municipality in both the Community of Madrid and Spain as a whole. The city has almost 3.2 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.5 million. It is the third-largest city in the European Union (EU), smaller than only London and Berlin, and its monocentric metropolitan area is the third-largest in the EU, smaller only than those of London and Paris. The municipality covers . Madrid lies on the River Manzanares in the centre of both the country and the Community of Madrid (which comprises the
Architecture of Madrid and the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, which completes the shortcomings of the other two museums. Cibeles Palace and Fountain have become the monument symbol of the city. The architecture of Madrid reflects a number of styles from various historical periods. Very little medieval architecture is preserved in Madrid, and most of it is located inside the Almendra central. Historical documents show that the city was walled and had a castle (the Alcázar) in the same place where the Royal Palace now stands. Among the few preserved medieval buildings are the mudejar towers of San Nicolás and San Pedro el Viejo churches, the