6. Spain and Portugal

Abstract

‘Spain and Portugal’ highlights the key garden designs of Spain and Portugal from the 16th century to the present day. The two greatest gardens of the Spanish Golden Age were commissioned by King Philip II at Aranjuez and the Escorial, which showed the influence of both Flemish and Italian gardens. Other key Spanish gardens described include La Granja de San Ildefonso in Segovia and Antoni Gaudí’s Parc Güell in Barcelona. Portuguese gardens of the 16th and 17th centuries incorporated glazed tiles—azulejos—and Arabic water tanks. Gardens described include the Golden Age Quinta da Bacalhoa and Castelo Branco, the 18th-century garden of the Palácio Nacional de Queluz; and Jacques Gréber’s modernist Parque de Serralves.