Calle Casado del Alisal

It bears the name of the Palencia-born painter José Casado del Alisal (Villada, 1832 — Madrid, 1886), a central figure of 19th-century Spanish history painting. It was laid out around 1880-1886 during the development around the Buen Retiro, between calle de Ruiz de Alarcón and calle de Alfonso XII, north of the rear façade of the Prado.

The sign was placed around 1880-1886, when the Jerónimos neighborhood was being divided into plots to fill with housing. The scheme’s criterion was clear: name the streets in memory of artists tied to the Prado and to 19th-century Spanish culture. José Casado del Alisal fit effortlessly. He was a central figure of Spanish history painting. He trained at the Real Academia de San Fernando under Federico de Madrazo, and in 1855 won a grant to study in Rome. His The Surrender of Bailén (1864), bought by Isabella II herself, hangs today in the Prado; also his are The Oath of the Cortes of Cádiz and The Bell of Huesca. Another painter’s death opened Rome’s door to him a second time: he directed the Spanish Academy in the city between 1873 and 1881.

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