Recently, there’s been a lot of talk about the latest photo session of King Felipe and Queen Letizia, along with their daughters, Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofía.
This photo shoot celebrated the royal couple’s 20th wedding anniversary.
The Royal House shared eleven pictures taken in the gardens of Campo del Moro, with the Royal Palace in the background.
But not many know that there’s a secret door in that very place, used only in emergencies, which allowed the photos to be taken without causing any commotion.
Secret Door of the Royal Palace
The Campo del Moro gardens are open to the public every day. Some might think they closed the gardens for the photo session, but the National Heritage, responsible for such closures, didn’t provide any information about it. Could it be that the royals used this ‘secret’ door that few know about?
Journalist Martín Bianchi revealed the location of these photos and the existence of a secret door rarely mentioned.
This door “was used by the royals in the past to enter and exit the palace without being seen.” This escape route dates back to the times of Joseph Bonaparte and was built under the supervision of Juan de Villanueva.
Additionally, this ‘secret’ door was where Alfonso XIII fled on the eve of the proclamation of the Republic. He never returned because he didn’t have the courage to leave through the main door and instead escaped in his car.
The Bonaparte Tunnel, named after Joseph Bonaparte, is just one of the palace’s secrets.
It’s possible there are other ‘secret doors’ in both the Royal Palace and the Palace of Zarzuela, used only in emergencies.
Madrid is full of secret tunnels, but some have more history than others.
The Bonaparte Tunnel connected the supposed residence of the French King (the now-gone Palace of Vargas in Casa de Campo) to a garden path in Campo del Moro, precisely where the recent royal photos were taken.
There are many theories about this tunnel and the intrigues it caused.
Some say Joseph Bonaparte slept at the Palace of Vargas every night out of fear of assassination and returned to the Royal Palace daily for work.
Other theories suggest his lover stayed at the Palace of Vargas, and they used the tunnel for their secret meetings. However, these are just theories, and little is known ‘officially.’
The Secret Rooms in the Palace of Zarzuela
Over the years, much has been said about the hidden rooms in the Palace of Zarzuela.
One example is King Felipe VI’s wine cellar, which holds up to 10,000 bottles of wine, many of them priceless gifts to both him and his father, King Juan Carlos. They both share a passion for good wine and have used this cellar for many years.
This mysterious wine cellar was revealed by Queen Letizia’s cousin, David Rocasolano, in his book “Adiós, princesa” (Goodbye, princess).
He described visiting the cellar, which had beach sand on the floor to maintain perfect humidity, and shelves filled with valuable wine bottles.