Calle de Pavía

Calle de Pavía owes its existence to a demolition. Between 1809 and 1811 Joseph Bonaparte ordered ten blocks in front of the Royal Palace razed, including the convent of San Gil. From that cleared ground came the Plaza de Oriente, and on its northern side this short street, built up on only one side, running from Calle de San Quintín to the Plaza de Oriente. The neighbouring streets all celebrate victories of the Spanish monarchy: San Quintín, Lepanto, and beside them Carlos III and Felipe V. The name Pavía was set by municipal agreement around 1848. The battle it commemorates lasted only a few hours. On 24 February 1525 the imperial counterattack broke the army of Francis I outside Pavia; the king himself fell from his horse and was captured. Taken to Madrid, he spent his captivity in the Torre de los Lujanes and the Alcázar before signing, in 1526, a treaty he broke the moment he crossed the border.