This publication, which features 220 large-format
photographs, offers us a visual tour of the houses that
belong to the Duchess of Alba in Madrid (The Liria
Palace), Seville (The Palace of Las Duenas), Salamanca
(The Palace of Monterrey), Ibiza and San Sebastian. The
images were taken by the renowned interior photographer,
Ricardo Labougle, whilst the architectural notes were
written by the architect and university professor,
Rafael Manzano. The whole project was coordinated by
Naty Abascal. Born in 1926, the goddaughter of Queen
Victoria Eugenia of Spain, the Duchess of Alba holds the
world record for the most aristocratic titles. Indeed,
her full name is Maria del Rosario Cayetana Alfonsa
Victoria Eugenia Francisca Fitz-James Stuart y de Silva
and she is a duchess seven times over, a countess 19
times and a marquesa 23 times. The 86-year-old noble,
who is internationally famous for holding more titles
than anyone else in the world (and for having fabulously
eccentric style) is head of the 530-year-old House of
Alba, and as such is entitled to ride her horse into
Seville Cathedral, and according to protocol does not
have to kneel before the Pope. It is said she could walk
from the northern tip of Spain to the southernmost point
without leaving her native lands. In 1947, the Duchess
married Don Pedro Luis Martinez de Irujo y Artacoz, son
of the Duke of Sotomayor. The wedding was considered to
be the last great feudal wedding in Spain and attracted
the attention of the international media. The Duchess
has been the subject of much media attention in her
native Spain, and is admired for her eccentric and
bohemian fashion sense. A famed beauty in her youth, she
once famously declared that her style icon was
"myself".
|
|