Madrid (/məˈdrɪd/, Spanish: [maˈðɾið])^[1] is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.3 million^[10] inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.5 million. It is the third-largest city in the European Union (EU), surpassed only by London and Berlin, and its monocentric metropolitan area is the third-largest in the EU, smaller only than those of London and Paris.^[11][12][13] The municipality covers 604.3 km2 (233.3 sq mi).^[14]

Madrid lies on the River Manzanares in the centre of both the country and the Community of Madrid (which comprises the city of Madrid, its conurbation and extended suburbs and villages); this community is bordered by the autonomous communities of Castile and León and Castile-La Mancha. As the capital city of Spain, seat of government, and residence of the Spanish monarch, Madrid is also the political, economic and cultural centre of the country.^[15] The current mayor is José Luis Martínez-Almeida from the People's Party.

The Madrid urban agglomeration has the third-largest GDP^[16] in the European Union and its influence in politics, education, entertainment, environment, media, fashion, science, culture, and the arts all contribute to its status as one of the world's major global cities.^[17][18] Madrid is home to two world-famous football clubs, Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid. Due to its economic output, high standard of living, and market size, Madrid is considered the leading economic hub of the Iberian Peninsula and of Southern Europe.^[19][20] It hosts the head offices of the vast majority of major Spanish companies, such as Telefónica, IAG or Repsol. Madrid is also the 10th most liveable city in the world according to Monocle magazine, in its 2017 index.^[21]

Madrid houses the headquarters of the UN's World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB), the Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI), and the Public Interest Oversight Board (PIOB). It also hosts major international regulators and promoters of the Spanish language: the Standing Committee of the Association of Spanish Language Academies, headquarters of the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE), the Cervantes Institute and the Foundation of Urgent Spanish (Fundéu BBVA). Madrid organises fairs such as FITUR,^[22] ARCO,^[23] SIMO TCI^[24] and the Madrid Fashion Week.^[25]

While Madrid possesses modern infrastructure, it has preserved the look and feel of many of its historic neighbourhoods and streets. Its landmarks include the Plaza Mayor, the Royal Palace of Madrid; the Royal Theatre with its restored 1850 Opera House; the Buen Retiro Park, founded in 1631; the 19th-century National Library building (founded in 1712) containing some of Spain's historical archives; many national museums,^[26] and the Golden Triangle of Art, located along the Paseo del Prado and comprising three art museums: Prado Museum, the Reina Sofía Museum, a museum of modern art, and the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, which complements the holdings of the other two museums.^[27] Cibeles Palace and Fountain have become one of the monument symbols of the city.^[28][29]

There are three established theories regarding the origin of the toponym "Madrid" (all of them with problems when it comes to fully explain the phonetic evolution of the toponym along history), namely:^[30]

Although the site of modern-day Madrid has been occupied since prehistoric times,^[32][33][34] and there are archaeological remains of Carpetani settlement,^[32] Roman villas,^[35] a Visigoth basilica near the church of Santa María de la Almudena^[36][37] and three Visigoth necropoleis near Casa de Campo, Tetúan and Vicálvaro,^[38] the first historical document about the existence of an established settlement in Madrid dates from the Muslim age. At the second half of the 9th century,^[39] Emir Muhammad I of Córdoba built a fortress on a headland near the river Manzanares,^[40] as one of the many fortresses he ordered to be built on the border between Al-Andalus and the kingdoms of León and Castile, with the objective of protecting Toledo from the Christian invasions and also as a starting point for Muslim offensives. After the disintegration of the Caliphate of Córdoba, Madrid was integrated in the Taifa of Toledo.

With the surrender of Toledo to Alfonso VI of León and Castile, the city was conquered by Christians in 1085, and it was integrated into the kingdom of Castile as a property of the Crown.^[41] Christians replaced Muslims in the occupation of the centre of the city, while Muslims and Jews settled in the suburbs. The city was thriving and was given the title of Villa, whose administrative district extended from the Jarama in the east to the river Guadarrama in the west. The government of the town was vested to the neighbouring of Madrid since 1346, when king Alfonso XI of Castile implements the regiment, for which only the local oligarchy was taking sides in city decisions.^[42] Since 1188, Madrid won the right to be a city with representation in the courts of Castile. In 1202, King Alfonso VIII of Castile gave Madrid its first charter to regulate the municipal council,^[43] which was expanded in 1222 by Ferdinand III of Castile.

In 1309, the Courts of Castile were joined in Madrid for the first time under Ferdinand IV of Castile, and later in 1329, 1339, 1391, 1393, 1419 and twice in 1435. Since the unification of the kingdoms of Spain under a common Crown, the Courts were convened in Madrid more often.

During the revolt of the Comuneros, led by Juan de Padilla, Madrid joined the revolt against Emperor Charles V of Germany and I of Spain, but after defeat at the Battle of Villalar, Madrid was besieged and occupied by the royal troops. However, Charles I was generous to the town and gave it the titles of Coronada (Crowned) and Imperial. When Francis I of France was captured at the battle of Pavia, he was imprisoned in Madrid. And in the village is dated the Treaty of Madrid of 1526 (later denounced by the French) that resolved their situation.^[44]

Is seen in the foreground the banks of the Manzana, crossed by the predecessors to the Segovia Bridge (in the first third), and the Toledo Bridge (further south, right), which was built in a monumental form years later. The most prominent building in the north (left) is the Alcázar, which was part of the walled circuit and which would undergo several fires until the fatal one in 1734 that almost completely destroyed it and was replaced by the current Palacio Real. The following churches are seen in the village (from left to right: San Gil, San Juan, Santiago, San Salvador, Iglesia de San Miguel de los Octoes, San Nicolás, Santa María, San Justo, San Pedro, Capilla del Obispo, San Andrés and, outside the walls, San Francisco), that do not yet have even the profile of domes and chapiters by which they would be characterised in the following centuries. Outside the walls and on the river, there is a craft facility dedicated to the treatment of hides: the Pozacho Tanneries. The recent installation of the court imposed a regalía de aposento tax on private houses, which produced all kinds of resistance including, most notably, the construction of Casas a la malicia.^[45]

The number of urban inhabitants grew from 4,060 in the year 1530 to 37,500 in the year 1594. The poor population of the court was composed of ex-soldiers, foreigners, rogues and Ruanes, dissatisfied with the lack of food and high prices. In June 1561, when the town had 30,000 inhabitants, Philip II of Spain set his court in Madrid, installing it in the old alcazar.^[46] Thanks to this, the city of Madrid became the political centre of the monarchy, being the capital of Spain except for a short period between 1601 and 1606 (Philip III of Spain's government), in which the Court was relocated to Valladolid. This fact was decisive for the evolution of the city and influenced its fate.

During the reign of Philip III and Philip IV of Spain, Madrid saw a period of exceptional cultural brilliance, with the presence of geniuses such as Miguel de Cervantes, Diego Velázquez, Francisco de Quevedo and Lope de Vega.^[47]

The death of Charles II of Spain resulted in the War of the Spanish succession. The city supported the claim of Philip of Anjou as Philip V. While the city was occupied in 1706 by a Portuguese army, who proclaimed king the Archduke Charles of Austria under the name of Charles III, and again in 1710, it remained loyal to Philip V.

Philip V built the Royal Palace, the Royal Tapestry Factory and the main Royal Academies.^[48] But the most important Bourbon was King Charles III of Spain, who was known as "the best mayor of Madrid". Charles III took upon himself the feat of transforming Madrid into a capital worthy of this category. He ordered the construction of sewers, street lighting, cemeteries outside the city, and many monuments (Puerta de Alcalá, Cibeles Fountain), and cultural institutions (El Prado Museum, Royal Botanic Gardens, Royal Observatory, etc.). Despite being known as one of the greatest benefactors of Madrid, his beginnings were not entirely peaceful, as in 1766 he had to overcome the Esquilache Riots, a traditionalist revolt instigated by the nobility and clergy against his reformist intentions, demanding the repeal of the clothing decree ordering the shortening of the layers and the prohibition of the use of hats that hide the face, with the aim of reducing crime in the city.^[49] The reign of Charles IV of Spain is not very meaningful to Madrid, except for the presence of Goya in the Court, who portrayed the popular and courtly life of the city.

On 27 October 1807, Charles IV and Napoleon I signed the Treaty of Fontainebleau, which allowed the passage of French troops through Spanish territory to join the Spanish troops and invade Portugal, which had refused to obey the order of international blockade against England. As this was happening, there was the Mutiny of Aranjuez (17 March 1808), by which the crown prince, Ferdinand VII, replaced his father as king. However, when Ferdinand VII returned to Madrid, the city was already occupied by Joachim-Napoléon Murat, so that both the king and his father were virtually prisoners of the French army. Napoleon, taking advantage of the weakness of the Spanish Bourbons, forced both, first the father then the son, to join him in Bayonne, where Ferdinand arrived on 20 April.

In the absence of the two kings, the situation became more and more tense in the capital. On 2 May, a crowd began to gather at the Royal Palace. The crowd saw the French soldiers pulled out of the palace to the royal family members who were still in the palace. Immediately, the crowd launched an assault on the floats. The fight lasted hours and spread throughout Madrid. Subsequent repression was brutal. In the Paseo del Prado and in the fields of La Moncloa hundreds of patriots were shot due to Murat's order against "Spanish all carrying arms". Paintings such as The Third of May 1808 by Goya reflect the repression that ended the popular uprising on 2 May.^[50]

The Peninsular War against Napoleon, despite the last absolutist claims during the reign of Ferdinand VII, gave birth to a new country with a liberal and bourgeois character, open to influences coming from the rest of Europe. Madrid, the capital of Spain, experienced like no other city the changes caused by this opening and filled with theatres, cafés and newspapers. Madrid was frequently altered by revolutionary outbreaks and pronouncements, such as the 1854 Vicalvarada, led by General Leopoldo O'Donnell and initiating the progressive biennium. However, in the early 20th century Madrid looked more like a small town than a modern city.

During the first third of the 20th century the population nearly doubled, reaching more than 850,000 inhabitants. New suburbs such as Las Ventas, Tetuán and El Carmen became the homes of the influx of workers, while Ensanche became a middle-class neighbourhood of Madrid.^[51]

The Spanish Constitution of 1931 was the first legislated on the state capital, setting it explicitly in Madrid.

Madrid was one of the most heavily affected cities of Spain in the Civil War (1936–1939). The city was a stronghold of the Republicans from July 1936. Its western suburbs were the scene of an all-out battle in November 1936 and during the Civil War the city was also bombed by aeroplanes. (See Siege of Madrid (1936–39)).^[52]

During the economic boom in Spain from 1959 to 1973, the city experienced unprecedented, extraordinary development in terms of population and wealth, becoming the largest GDP city in Spain, and ranking third in Western Europe.

The municipality grew through the annexation of neighbouring municipalities, achieving the present extension of 607 km2 (234.36 sq mi). The south of Madrid became very industrialised, and there were massive migrations from rural areas of Spain into the city. Madrid's newly built north-western districts became the home of the new thriving middle class that appeared as result of the 1960s Spanish economic boom, while the south-eastern periphery became an extensive working-class settlement, which was the base for an active cultural and political reform.^[52]

After the death of Franco and the start of the democratic regime, the 1978 constitution confirmed Madrid as the capital of Spain. In 1979, the first municipal elections brought Madrid's first democratically elected mayor since the Second Republic.

Madrid was the scene of some of the most important events of the time, such as the mass demonstrations of support for democracy after the failed coup, 23-F, on 23 February 1981. The first democratic mayors belonged to the leftist PSOE (Enrique Tierno Galván, Juan Barranco Gallardo), turning the city after more conservative positions (Agustín Rodríguez Sahagún, José María Álvarez del Manzano, Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón and Ana Botella).

Benefiting from increasing prosperity in the 1980s and 1990s, the capital city of Spain has consolidated its position as an important economic, cultural, industrial, educational, and technological centre on the European continent.^[52]

Madrid lies on the southern Meseta Central, 60 km south of the Guadarrama mountain range and straddling the Jarama and Manzanares river sub-drainage basins, in the wider Tagus River catchment area. There is a considerable difference in altitude within city limits ranging from 543 m (1,781 ft) in the Manzanares riverbanks in the southeast of the municipality to 846 m (2,776 ft) above sea level in the highest part of the Fuencarral-El Pardo district. Over a quarter of the Madrid municipal area is covered by the largely forested protected area of El Pardo.

The oldest urban core is located on the hills next to the left bank of the Manzanares River.^[53] The city grew to the east, reaching the Fuente Castellana Creek (now the Paseo de la Castellana), and further east reaching the Abroñigal Creek (now the M-30).^[53] The city also grew through the annexation of neighbouring urban settlements,^[53] including those to the South West on the right bank of the Manzanares.

Madrid has an inland Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csa)^[54] in the western half of the city transitioning to a semi-arid climate (BSk) in the eastern half.^[55] Winters are cool due to its altitude, which is approximately 667 m (2,188 ft) above sea level, including sporadic snowfalls and frequent frosts between December and February. Summers are hot, in the warmest month, July, average temperatures during the day range from 32 to 34 °C (90 to 93 °F) depending on location, with maxima commonly climbing over 35 °C (95 °F) during the frequent heat waves. Due to Madrid's altitude and dry climate, diurnal ranges are often significant during the summer. The highest recorded temperature was on 24 July 1995, at 42.2 °C (108.0 °F), and the lowest recorded temperature was on 16 January 1945 at −15.3 °C (4.5 °F). These records were registered at the airport, in the eastern side of the city.^[56] Precipitation is concentrated in the autumn and spring, and, together with Athens which has similar annual precipitation, Madrid is the driest capital in Europe. It is particularly sparse during the summer, taking the form of about two showers and/or thunderstorms during the season.

In the 17th century, the so called "viajes de agua" (a kind of water channels or qanat) were used to provide water to the city. Some of the most important ones were the Viaje de Amaniel (1610–1621, sponsored by the Crown), the Viaje de Fuente Castellana (1613–1620) and Abroñigal Alto/Abroñigal Bajo (1617–1630), sponsored by the City Council. They were the main infrastructure for the supply of water until the arrival of the Canal de Isabel II in the mid 19th-century.^[62]

Madrid derives almost 73.5 percent of its water supply from dams and reservoirs built on the Lozoya River, such as the El Atazar Dam.^[63] This water supply is managed by the Canal de Isabel II, a public entity created in 1851. It is responsible for the supply, depurating waste water and the conservation of all the natural water resources of the Madrid region.

The population of Madrid has overall increased since the city became the capital of Spain in the mid-16th century, and has stabilised at approximately 3 million since the 1970s.

From 1970 until the mid-1990s, the population dropped. This phenomenon, which also affected other European cities, was caused in part by the growth of satellite suburbs at the expense of the downtown region within the city proper. This also occurred during a period of slowed growth in the European economy.

The demographic boom accelerated in the late 1990s and early first decade of the 21st century due to immigration in parallel with a surge in Spanish economic growth. According to census data, the population of the city grew by 271,856 between 2001 and 2005.

The Community of Madrid is the EU-Region with the highest average life expectancy at birth. The average life expectancy was 82.2 years for males and 87.8 for females in 2016.^[64]

As the capital city of Spain, the city has attracted many immigrants from around the world. In 2015, about 89.8% of the inhabitants were Spanish citizens, while people of other citizenships, including immigrants from Latin America, Europe, Asia, North Africa and West Africa, represented 10.2% of the population.

The ten largest immigrant groups include: Ecuadorian: 104,184, Romanian: 52,875, Bolivian: 44,044, Colombian: 35,971, Peruvian: 35,083, Chinese: 34,666, Moroccan: 32,498, Dominican: 19,602, Brazilian: 14,583, and Paraguayan: 14,308.^[67] There were 2,476 Japanese citizens registered with the Japanese embassy in Madrid in 1993.^[68][2] There are also important communities of Filipinos, Equatorial Guineans, Uruguayans, Bulgarians, Greeks, Indians, Italians, Argentines, Senegalese and Poles.^[67]

Districts that host the largest number of immigrants are Usera (28.37%), Centro (16.87%), Carabanchel (22.72%) and Tetuán (21.54%). Districts that host the smallest number are Fuencarral-El Pardo (9.27%), Retiro (9.64%) and Chamartín (11.74%).

Most people in Madrid are Roman Catholic Christians. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Madrid. In a 2011 survey conducted by InfoCatólica, 63.3% of Madrid residents of all ages identified themselves as Catholic.^[69]

According to a 2019 Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas (CIS) survey with a sample size of 469 respondents, 20.7% of respondents in Madrid identify themselves as practising Catholics, 45.8% as non-practising Catholics, 3.8% as believers of another religion, 11.1% as agnostics, 3.6% of respondents in Madrid are just indifferent towards religion and 12.8% identify as atheists. The remaining 2.1% did not state their religious beliefs.^[70]

The Madrid metropolitan area comprises Madrid and the surrounding municipalities. According to Eurostat, it has a population of slightly more than 6,271 million people^[71] covering an area of 4,609.7 square kilometres (1,780 sq mi). It is the largest metropolitan area in Spain and the third largest in the European Union.^[11][12][13]

The City Council (Ayuntamiento de Madrid) is the body responsible for the government and administration of the municipality. It is formed by the Plenary (Pleno), the Mayor (alcalde) and the Government Board (Junta de Gobierno de la Ciudad de Madrid).

The Plenary of the Ayuntamiento is the body of political representation of the citizens in the municipal government. Its members (currently 57) are elected for a 4-year mandate. Some of its attributions are: fiscal matters, the election and deposition of the mayor, the approval and modification of decrees and regulations, the approval of budgets, the agreements related to the limits and alteration of the municipal term, the services management, the participation in supramunicipal organisations, etc.^[72]

The mayor, the supreme representative of the city, presides over the Ayuntamiento. He is charged with giving impetus to the municipal policies, managing the action of the rest of bodies and directing the executive municipal administration.^[73] He is responsible to the Pleno. He is also entitled to preside over the meetings of the Pleno, although this responsility can be delegated to another municipal councillor. José Luis Martínez-Almeida, a member of the People's Party, serves as Mayor since 2019.

The Government Board consists of the mayor, the deputy mayor(s) and a number of delegates assuming the portfolios for the different government areas. All those positions are held by municipal councillors.^[74]

Since 2007, the Cybele Palace (or Palace of Communications) serves as City Hall.

Madrid is administratively divided into 21 districts, which are further subdivided into 131 neighborhoods (barrios):

Madrid is the capital of the Community of Madrid. The region has its own legislature and it enjoys a wide range of competencies in areas such as social spending, healthcare, education. The seat of the regional parliament, the Assembly of Madrid is located at the district of Puente de Vallecas. The presidency of the regional government is headquartered at the Royal House of the Post Office, at the very centre of the city, the Puerta del Sol.

Madrid is the capital of the Kingdom of Spain. The King of Spain, whose functions are mainly ceremonial, has their official residence in the Zarzuela Palace. As the seat of the Government of Spain, Madrid also houses the official residence of the President of the Government (Prime Minister) and regular meeting place of the Council of Ministers, the Moncloa Palace, as well as the headquarters of the ministerial departments. Both the residences of the Head of State and Government are located at the northwest of the city. Additionally, the seats of the Lower and Upper Chambers of the Spanish Parliament, the Cortes Generales (respectively, the Palacio de las Cortes and the Palacio del Senado), also lie on Madrid.

The Madrid Municipal Police (Policía Municipal de Madrid) is the local law enforcement body, dependent on the Ayuntamiento. As of 2018, it had a workforce of 6,190 civil servants.^[75]

The headquarters of both the Directorate-General of the Police and the Directorate-General of the Civil Guard are located in Madrid. The headquarters of the Higher Office of Police of Madrid (Jefatura Superior de Policía de Madrid), the peripheral branch of the National Police Corps with jurisdiction over the region also lies on Madrid.

Little medieval architecture is preserved in Madrid, mostly in the Almendra central, including the San Nicolás and San Pedro el Viejo church towers, the church of San Jerónimo el Real, and the Bishop's Chapel. Nor has Madrid retained much Renaissance architecture, other than the Bridge of Segovia and the Convent of Las Descalzas Reales.

Many of the historic buildings of Madrid date from the Spanish Golden Age, which coincided with the Habsburgs reign (1516–1700). Philip II moved his court to Madrid in 1561 and transformed the town into a capital city.^[76] These reforms were embodied in the Plaza Mayor, characterised by its symmetry and austerity, as well as the new Alcázar, which would become the second most impressive royal palace of the kingdom. The material used during the Habsburg era was mostly brick, and the humble façades contrast with the elaborate interiors. Notable buildings include the Prison of the Court, the Palace of the Councils, the Royal Convent of La Encarnación, and the Buen Retiro Palace. The Imperial College church model dome was imitated in all of Spain. Pedro de Ribera introduced Churrigueresque architecture to Madrid; the Cuartel del Conde-Duque, the church of Montserrat, and the Bridge of Toledo are among the best examples.

The reign of the Bourbons during the eighteenth century marked a new era in the city. Philip V tried to complete King Philip II's vision of urbanisation of Madrid. Philip V built a palace in line with French taste, as well as other buildings such as St. Michael's Basilica and the Church of Santa Bárbara. King Charles III beautified the city and endeavoured to convert Madrid into one of the great European capitals. He pushed forward the construction of the Prado Museum (originally intended as a Natural Science Museum), the Puerta de Alcalá, the Royal Observatory, the Basilica of San Francisco el Grande, the Casa de Correos in Puerta del Sol, the Real Casa de la Aduana, and the General Hospital (which now houses the Reina Sofia Museum and Royal Conservatory of Music). The Paseo del Prado, surrounded by gardens and decorated with neoclassical statues, is an example of urban planning. The Duke of Berwick ordered the construction of the Liria Palace.

During the early 19th century, the Peninsular War, the loss of viceroyalties in the Americas, and continuing coups limited the city's architectural development (Royal Theatre, the National Library of Spain, the Palace of the Senate, and the Congress). The Segovia Viaduct linked the Royal Alcázar to the southern part of town.

The list of key figures of madrilenian architecture during the 19th and 20th centuries includes authors such as Narciso Pascual y Colomer, Francisco Jareño y Alarcón, Francisco de Cubas, Juan Bautista Lázaro de Diego, Ricardo Velázquez Bosco, Antonio Palacios, Secundino Zuazo, Luis Gutiérrez Soto, Luis Moya Blanco and Alejandro de la Sota.^[77]

From the mid-19th century until the Civil War, Madrid modernised and built new neighbourhoods and monuments. The expansion of Madrid developed under the Plan Castro, resulting in the neighbourhoods of Salamanca, Argüelles, and Chamberí. Arturo Soria conceived the linear city and built the first few kilometres of the road that bears his name, which embodies the idea. The Gran Vía was built using different styles that evolved over time: French style, eclectic, art deco, and expressionist. Antonio Palacios built a series of buildings inspired by the Viennese Secession, such as the Palace of Communication, the Fine Arts Circle of Madrid (Círculo de Bellas Artes), and the Río de La Plata Bank (Instituto Cervantes). Other notable buildings include the Bank of Spain, the neo-Gothic Almudena Cathedral, Atocha Station, and the Catalan art-nouveau Palace of Longoria. Las Ventas Bullring was built, as the Market of San Miguel (Cast-Iron style).

The Civil War severely damaged the city. Subsequently, the old town and the Ensanche were destroyed, and numerous blocks of flats were built. Examples of post-war architecture include the Spanish Air Force headquarters and the skyscrapers of Plaza de España, at the time (the 1950s) the highest in Europe.

With the advent of Spanish economic development, skyscrapers, such as Torre Picasso, Torres Blancas and Torre BBVA, and the Gate of Europe, appeared in the late 20th century in the city. During the decade of the 2000s, the four tallest skyscrapers in Spain were built and together form the Cuatro Torres Business Area.^[78] Terminal 4 at Madrid-Barajas Airport was inaugurated in 2006 and won several architectural awards. Terminal 4 is one of the world's largest terminal areas^[79] and features glass panes and domes in the roof, which allow natural light to pass through.

Madrid is the European city with the highest number of trees and green surface per inhabitant and it has the second highest number of aligned trees in the world, with 248,000 units, only exceeded by Tokyo. Madrid's citizens have access to a green area within a 15-minute walk. Since 1997, green areas have increased by 16%. At present, 8.2% of Madrid's grounds are green areas, meaning that there are 16 m2 (172 sq ft) of green area per inhabitant, far exceeding the 10 m2 (108 sq ft) per inhabitant recommended by the World Health Organization.

A great bulk of the most important parks in Madrid are related to areas originally belonging to the royal assets (including El Pardo, Soto de Viñuelas, Casa de Campo, El Buen Retiro, la Florida and the Príncipe Pío hill, and the Queen's Casino).^[80] The other main source for the current "green" areas are the bienes de propios owned by the municipality (including the Dehesa de la Villa, the Dehesa de Arganzuela or Viveros).^[81]

El Retiro is the most visited location of the city.^[82] With and area more than 1.4 km2 (0.5 sq mi) (350 acres), it is the largest park within the "Central Almond", the inner part of the city enclosed by the M-30. Created during the reign of Philip IV (17th century), it was handed over to the municipality in 1868, after the Glorious Revolution.^[83][84] It lies next to the Royal Botanical Garden of Madrid.

Located northwest of the city centre, the Parque del Oeste ("Park of the West") comprises part of the area of the former royal possession of the "Real Florida", and it features a slope as the height decreases down to the Manzanares.^[85] Its southern extension includes the Temple of Debod, a transported ancient Egyptian temple.^[86]

Other urban parks are the Parque de El Capricho, the Parque Juan Carlos I (both in northeast Madrid), Madrid Río, the Enrique Tierno Galván Park, the San Isidro Park as well as gardens suchs as the Campo del Moro (opened to the public in 1978)^[81] and the Sabatini Gardens (opened to the public in 1931)^[81] near the Royal Palace.

Further west, across the Manzanares, lies the Casa de Campo, a large forested area with more than 1700 hectares (6.6 sq mi) where the Madrid Zoo, and the Parque de Atracciones de Madrid amusement park are located. It was ceded to the municipality following the proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic in 1931.^[87]

The Monte de El Pardo is the largest forested area in the municipality. A holm oak forest covering a surface over 16,000 hectares, it is considered the best preserved mediterranean forest in the Community of Madrid and one of the best preserved in Europe.^[88] Already mentioned in the Alfonso XI's Libro de la montería from the mid 14th-century, its condition as hunting location linked to the Spanish monarchy help to preserve the enviromental value.^[88] During the reign of Ferdinand VII the regime of hunting prohibition for the Monte de El Pardo became one of full property and the expropiation of all possessions within its bounds was enforced, with dire consequences for the madrilenians at the time.^[89] It is designated as Special Protection Area for bird-life and it is also part of the Regional Park of the High Basin of the Manzanares.

Other large forested areas include the Soto de Viñuelas, the Dehesa de Valdelatas and the Dehesa de la Villa. As of 2015, the most recent big park in the municipality is the Valdebebas Park. Covering a total area of 4.7 km,2 it is sub-divided in a 3.4 km2 forest park (the Parque Forestal de Valdebebas), a 0.8 km2 periurban park as well as municipal garden centres and compost plants.^[90]

After it became the capital of Spain in the 16th century, Madrid was more a centre of consumption than of production or trade. Economic activity was largely devoted to supplying the city's own rapidly growing population, including the royal household and national government, and to such trades as banking and publishing.

A large industrial sector did not develop until the 20th century, but thereafter industry greatly expanded and diversified, making Madrid the second industrial city in Spain. However, the economy of the city is now becoming more and more dominated by the service sector.

Madrid is the 5th most important leading Center of Commerce in Europe (after London, Paris, Frankfurt and Amsterdam) and ranks 11th in the world.^[19]

As the capital city of the Spanish Empire from 1561, Madrid's population grew rapidly. Administration, banking, and small-scale manufacturing centred on the royal court were among the main activities, but the city was more a locus of consumption than production or trade, geographically isolated as it was before the coming of the railways.

The Bank of Spain is one of the oldest european central banks. Originally named as the Bank of San Carlos as it was founded in 1782, it was later renamed to Bank of San Fernando in 1829 and ultimately became the Bank of Spain in 1856.^[91] Its current headquarters are located at the calle de Alcalá. The Madrid Stock Exchange was inaugurated on 20 October 1831.^[92] Its benchmark stock market index is the IBEX 35.

Industry started to develop on a large scale only in the 20th century,^[93] but then grew rapidly, especially during the "Spanish miracle" period around the 1960s. The economy of the city was then centred on diverse manufacturing industries such as those related to motor vehicles, aircraft, chemicals, electronic devices, pharmaceuticals, processed food, printed materials, and leather goods.^[94] Since the restoration of democracy in the late 1970s, the city has continued to expand. Its economy is now among the most dynamic and diverse in the European Union.^[95]

Madrid concentrates activities directly connected with power (central and regional government, headquarters of Spanish companies, regional HQ of multinationals, financial institutions) and with knowledge and technological innovation (research centres and universities). It is one of Europe's largest financial centres and the largest in Spain.^[96] The city has 17 universities and over 30 research centres.^{[96] []} It is the third metropolis in the EU by population, and the fourth by gross internal product.^{[96] []} Leading employers include Telefónica, Iberia, Prosegur, BBVA, Urbaser, Dragados, and FCC.^{[96] []}

The Community of Madrid, the region comprising the city and the rest of municipalities of the province, had a GDP of €220B in 2017, equating to a GDP per capita of €33,800.^[97] In 2011 the city itself had a GDP per capita 74% above the national average and 70% above that of the 27 European Union member states, although 11% behind the average of the top 10 cities of the EU.^{[96] []} Although housing just over 50% of the region's's population, the city generates 65.9% of its GDP.^{[96] []} Following the recession commencing 2007/8, recovery was under way by 2014, with forecast growth rates for the city of 1.4% in 2014, 2.7% in 2015 and 2.8% in 2016.^{[98] []}

The economy of Madrid has become based increasingly on the service sector. In 2011 services accounted for 85.9% of value added, while industry contributed 7.9% and construction 6.1%.^{[96] []} Nevertheless, Madrid continues to hold the position of Spain's second industrial centre after Barcelona, specialising particularly in high-technology production. Following the recession, services and industry were forecast to return to growth in 2014, and construction in 2015.^{[98] []}

Mean household income and spending are 12% above the Spanish average.^{[96] []} The proportion classified as "at risk of poverty" in 2010 was 15.6%, up from 13.0% in 2006 but less than the average for Spain of 21.8%. The proportion classified as affluent was 43.3%, much higher than Spain overall (28.6%).^{[96] []}

Consumption by Madrid residents has been affected by job losses and by austerity measures, including a rise in sales tax from 8% to 21% in 2012.^[99]

Although residential property prices have fallen by 39% since 2007, the average price of dwelling space was €2,375.6 per sq. m. in early 2014,^{[98] []} and is shown as second only to London in a list of 22 European cities.^[100]

Participation in the labour force was 1,638,200 in 2011, or 79.0%. The employed workforce comprised 49% women in 2011 (Spain, 45%).^{[96] []} 41% of economically active people are university graduates, against 24% for Spain as a whole.^{[96] []}

In 2011, the unemployment rate was 15.8%, remaining lower than in Spain as a whole. Among those aged 16–24, the unemployment rate was 39.6%.^{[96] []} Unemployment reached a peak of 19.1% in 2013,^{[98] []} but with the start of an economic recovery in 2014, employment started to increase.^[101] Employment continues to shift further towards the service sector, with 86% of all jobs in this sector by 2011, against 74% in all of Spain.^[96] In the second quarter of 2018 the unemployment rate was 10.06%.^{[102] []}

The share of services in the city's economy is 86%. Services to business, transport & communications, property & financial together account for 52% of total value added.^{[96] []} The types of services that are now expanding are mainly those that facilitate movement of capital, information, goods and persons, and "advanced business services" such as research and development (R&D), information technology, and technical accountancy.^{[96] []}

Banks based in Madrid carry out 72% of the banking activity in Spain.^{[96] []} The Spanish central bank, Bank of Spain, has existed in Madrid since 1782. Stocks & shares, bond markets, insurance, and pension funds are other important forms of financial institution in the city.

Madrid is an important centre for trade fairs, many of them coordinated by IFEMA, the Trade Fair Institution of Madrid.^{[96] []} The public sector employs 18.1% of all employees.^{[96] []} Madrid attracts about 8M tourists annually from other parts of Spain and from all over the world, exceeding even Barcelona.^{[96] [] [96] [] [98] []} Spending by tourists in Madrid was estimated (2011) at €9,546.5M, or 7.7% of the city's GDP.^{[96] []}

The construction of transport infrastructure has been vital to maintain the economic position of Madrid. Travel to work and other local journeys use a high-capacity metropolitan road network and a well-used public transport system.^{[96] []} In terms of longer-distance transport, Madrid is the central node of the system of autovías and of the high-speed rail network (AVE), which has brought major cities such as Seville and Barcelona within 2.5 hours travel time.^{[96] []} Also important to the city's economy is Madrid-Barajas Airport, the fourth largest airport in Europe.^{[96] []} Madrid's central location makes it a major logistical base.^{[96] []}

As an industrial centre Madrid retains its advantages in infrastructure, as a transport hub, and as the location of headquarters of many companies. Industries based on advanced technology are acquiring much more importance here than in the rest of Spain.^{[96] []} Industry contributed 7.5% to Madrid's value-added in 2010.^{[96] []} However, industry has slowly declined within the city boundaries as more industry has moved outward to the periphery. Industrial Gross Value Added grew by 4.3% in the period 2003–2005, but decreased by 10% during 2008–2010.^{[96] []} The leading industries were: paper, printing & publishing, 28.8%; energy & mining, 19.7%; vehicles & transport equipment, 12.9%; electrical and electronic, 10.3%; foodstuffs, 9.6%; clothing, footwear & textiles, 8.3%; chemical, 7.9%; industrial machinery, 7.3%.^{[96] []}

The PSA Peugeot Citroën plant is located in Villaverde district.

The construction sector, contributing 6.5% to the city's economy in 2010,^{[96] []} was a growing sector before the recession, aided by a large transport and infrastructure program. More recently the construction sector has fallen away and earned 8% less in 2009 than it had been in 2000.^{[96] []} The decrease was particularly marked in the residential sector, where prices dropped by 25%–27% from 2007 to 2012/13^{[96] []} and the number of sales fell by 57%.^{[96] []}

Madrid is the seat of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the International Tourism Fair (FITUR).

In 2018, the city received 10.21 million tourists (53.3% of them international tourists).^[103]p.9 The biggest share of international tourists come from the United States, followed by Italy, France, United Kingdom and Germany.^[103]p.10 As of 2018, the city has 793 hotels, 85,418 hotel places and 43,816 hotel rooms.^[103]p.18 It also had, as of 2018, an estimated 20,217 tourist appartments.^[103]p.20

The most visited museum was the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, with 3.8 million visitors in the sum of its three seats in 2018. Conversely, the Prado Museum had 2.8 million visitors and the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum 906,815 visitors.^[103]p.32 The most important musical event is the Mad Cool festival, with an attendance of 240,000 during a three-day long schedule in 2018.^[103]p.33 Another yearly mass event is the Madrid Pride, with roughly 1.5 million participants in 2018.^[103]p.34

By the late 2010s, the gentrification and the spike of tourist appartments in the city centre led to an increase in rental prices, pushing residents out of the city centre.^[104] Most of the tourist appartments in Madrid (50–54%) are located in the Centro District.^[105] In the Sol neighborhood (part of the latter district), 3 out of 10 homes are dedicated to tourist appartments,^[105] and 2 out ot 10 are listed in AirBnB.^[104] In April 2019 the plenary of the ayuntamiento passed a plan intending to regulate this practice, seeking to greatly limit the number of tourist appartments. The normative would enforce a requirement for independent access to those appartments in and out of the street.^[106] However, after the change of government in June 2019, the new municipal administration plans to revert the regulation.^[107]

A recent study placed Madrid 7th among 36 cities as an attractive base for business.^[108] It was placed third in terms of availability of office space, and fifth for easy of access to markets, availability of qualified staff, mobility within the city, and quality of life. Its less favourable characteristics were seen as pollution, languages spoken, and political environment. Another ranking of European cities placed Madrid 5th among 25 cities (behind Berlin, London, Paris and Frankfurt), being rated favourably on economic factors and the labour market, and on transport and communication.^[109]

Madrid is an important film and television production hub, whose content is distributed throughout the Spanish-speaking world and abroad. Madrid is often seen as the entry point into the European media market for Latin American media companies, and likewise the entry point into the Latin American markets for European companies.^[110] Madrid is the headquarters of media groups such as Radiotelevisión Española, Atresmedia, Mediaset España Comunicación, and Movistar+, which produce numerous films, television shows and series which are distributed globally on various platforms.^[111] Since 2018, the region is also home to Netflix's Madrid Production Hub, Mediapro Studio, and numerous others such as Viacom International Studios.^{[112][113][114][115]} As of 2019, the film and television industry in Madrid employs 19,000 people (44% of people in Spain working in this industry).^[116]

Madrid is home to numerous newspapers, magazines and publications, including ABC, El País, El Mundo, La Razón, Marca, ¡Hola!, Diario AS, El Confidencial and Cinco Días. The Spanish international news agency EFE maintains its headquarters in Madrid since its inception in 1939. The second news agency of Spain is the privately owned Europa Press, founded and headquartered in Madrid since 1953.

RTVE, the state-owned Spanish Radio and Television Corporation is headquartered in Madrid along with all its TV and radio channels and web services (La 1, La 2, Clan, Teledeporte, 24 Horas, TVE Internacional, Radio Nacional de España), Radio Exterior de España, Radio Clásica. The Atresmedia group (Antena 3, La Sexta, Onda Cero) is headquartered in nearby San Sebastián de los Reyes. The television network and media production company, the largest in Spain, Mediaset España Comunicación (Telecinco, Cuatro) maintains its headquarters in Fuencarral-El Pardo district. The Spanish media conglomerate PRISA (Cadena SER, Los 40 Principales, M80 Radio, Cadena Dial) is headquartered in Gran Vía street in central Madrid.

Madrid is considered one of the top European destinations concerning art museums. Best known is the Golden Triangle of Art, located along the Paseo del Prado and comprising three museums. The most famous one is the Prado Museum, known for such highlights as Diego Velázquez's Las Meninas and Francisco de Goya's La maja vestida and La maja desnuda. The other two museums are the Thyssen Bornemisza Museum, established from a mixed private collection, and the Reina Sofía Museum, where Pablo Picasso's Guernica is exhibited, returned to Spain from New York after more than two decades.

The Prado Museum (Museo del Prado) is a museum and art gallery that features one of the world's finest collections of European art, from the 12th century to the early 19th century, based on the former Spanish Royal Collection. The collection currently comprises around 7,600 paintings, 1,000 sculptures, 4,800 prints and 8,200 drawings, in addition to many works of art and historic documents. El Prado is one of the most visited museums in the world, and it is considered to be among the greatest museums of art. It has the best collection of artworks by Goya, Velázquez, El Greco, Rubens, Titian, Hieronymus Bosch, José de Ribera, and Patinir as well as works by Rogier van der Weyden, Raphael Sanzio, Tintoretto, Veronese, Caravaggio, Van Dyck, Albrecht Dürer, Claude Lorrain, Murillo, and Zurbarán, among others. Among the most famous paintings in this museum are Las Meninas, The Garden of Earthly Delights, The Immaculate Conception, and The Judgement of Paris.

The National Archaeological Museum of Madrid (Museo Arqueológico Nacional) shows archaeological finds from Prehistory to the 19th century, especially from the Iberian Peninsula, distributed over three floors. Some of its most representative works are the Lady of Elche, Lady of Baza, Lady of Cerro de los Santos, Lady of Ibiza, Bicha of Balazote, Treasure of Guarrazar, Pyxis of Zamora, Mausoleum of Pozo Moro or a napier's bones. Its collections of Roman mosaics, Greek ceramics, Islamic art and Romanesque art are very important. In addition, the museum has a reproduction of the roof of the polychromes of the Altamira Cave in an underground room under the outside garden.

The Reina Sofía National Art Museum (Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, abbreviated as MNCARS) is Madrid's national museum of 20th-century art. The museum is mainly dedicated to Spanish art. Highlights of the museum include excellent collections of Spain's greatest 20th-century masters, Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Joan Miró, Juan Gris, and Julio González. Certainly the most famous masterpiece in the museum is Picasso's painting Guernica. The Reina Sofía also hosts a free-access library specialising in art, with a collection of over 100,000 books, over 3,500 sound recordings, and almost 1,000 videos.^[117]

The Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum (Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza) is an art museum that fills the historical gaps in its counterparts' collections: in the Prado's case, this includes Italian primitives and works from the English, Dutch, and German schools, while in the case of the Reina Sofía, the Thyssen-Bornemisza collection, once the second largest private collection in the world after the British Royal Collection,^[118] includes Impressionists, Expressionists, and European and American paintings from the second half of the 20th century, with over 1,600 paintings.^[119]

The Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando (Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando) currently functions as a museum and gallery that houses a fine art collection of paintings from the 15th to 20th centuries, including works by Giovanni Bellini, Correggio, Rubens, Zurbarán, Murillo, Goya, Juan Gris, and Pablo Serrano. The academy is also the headquarters of the Madrid Academy of Art. Francisco Goya was once one of the academy's directors, and its alumni include Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Antonio López García, Juan Luna, and Fernando Botero.^[120][121]

The Royal Palace of Madrid (Palacio Real de Madrid) is the official residence of Felipe VI of Spain, but he uses it only for official acts. It is a baroque palace full of artworks and is one of the largest European royal palaces, characterised by its luxurious rooms and its rich collections of armours and weapons, pharmaceuticals, silverware, watches, paintings, tapestries, and the most comprehensive collection of Stradivarius in the world.^[122]

The Museum of the Americas (Museo de América) is a national museum that holds artistic, archaeological, and ethnographic collections from the Americas, ranging from the Paleolithic period to the present day. The permanent exhibit is divided into five major themed areas: an awareness of the Americas, the reality of the Americas, society, religion, and communication.^[123]

The National Museum of Natural Sciences (Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales) is Spain's national museum of natural history. The research departments of the museum are biodiversity and evolutionary biology, evolutionary ecology, paleobiology, vulcanology, and geology.^[124]

The Naval Museum (Museo Naval) is managed by the Ministry of Defense. The museum's mission is to acquire, preserve, investigate, report, and display for study, education, and contemplation parts, sets, and collections of historical, artistic, scientific, and technical works related to naval activity in order to disseminate Spanish maritime history; to help illustrate, highlight, and preserve their traditions; and promote national maritime awareness.^[125]

The Convent of Las Descalzas Reales (Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales) resides in the former palace of King Charles I of Spain and Isabella of Portugal. Their daughter, Joan of Austria, founded this convent of nuns of the Poor Clare order in 1559. Throughout the remainder of the 16th century and into the 17th century, the convent attracted young widowed or spinster noblewomen. Each woman brought with her a dowry. The riches quickly piled up, and the convent became one of the richest convents in all of Europe. It has many works of Renaissance and Baroque art, including a recumbent Christ by Gaspar Becerra, a staircase whose paintings were painted by an unknown artist (perhaps Velázquez) and that are considered masterpieces of Spanish Illusionistic painting, and Brussels tapestries inspired by paintings of Rubens.^[126]

The Museum of Lázaro Galdiano (Museo de Lázaro Galdiano) houses an encyclopaedic collection specialising in decorative arts. Apart from paintings and sculptures, it displays 10th-century Byzantine enamel; Arab and Byzantine ivory chests; Hellenistic, Roman, medieval, renaissance, baroque, and romantic jewellery; Pisanello and Pompeo Leoni medals; Spanish and Italian ceramics; Italian and Arab clothes; and a collection of weapons; including the sword of Pope Innocent VIII.^[127]

The National Museum of Decorative Arts (Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativas) is one of the oldest museums in the city and illustrates the evolution of the so-called "minor arts" (furniture, ceramics and glass, textile, etc.). Its 60 rooms display 15,000 of the institute's approximately 40,000 total.^[128]

The National Museum of Romanticism (Museo Nacional de Romanticismo) contains a large collection of artefacts and art, focusing on daily life and customs of the 19th century, with special attention to the aesthetics of Romanticism.^[129]

The Museum Cerralbo (Museo Cerralbo) houses a private collection of ancient works of art, artefacts and other antiquities collected by Enrique de Aguilera y Gamboa, 17th Marquis of Cerralbo.^[130]

The National Museum of Anthropology (Museo Nacional de Antropología) provides an overview of different cultures, with objects and human remains from around the world, highlighting a Guanche mummy from Tenerife.^[131]

The Sorolla Museum (Museo Sorolla) is located in the building in which the Valencian Impressionist painter had his home and workshop. It maintains the original atmosphere of the home and studio of the painter, Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida (Valencia, 1863 - Cercedilla, 1923), and houses the largest collection of his works. It is one of the artist's most complete and best conserved houses in Europe and its garden, which was also designed by him, is a precious oasis in the city.^[132] The collection includes, in addition to numerous works by Joaquín Sorolla, many of the artist's personal effects, including sculptures by Auguste Rodin.^[133]

CaixaForum Madrid is a post-modern art gallery in the centre of Madrid. It is sponsored by the Catalan-Balearic bank La Caixa and located next to the Salón del Prado. Although the CaixaForum is a modern building, it also exhibits retrospectives of artists from earlier time periods and has evolved into one of the most-visited museums in Madrid. It was constructed by the Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron from 2001 to 2007, who took an unused industrial building and hollowed it out at the base and inside and then added additional floors encased with rusted steel. Next to the gallery is an art installation by French botanist Patrick Blanc of green plants growing on the wall of the neighbouring house. The red of the top floors with the green of the wall next to it form a contrast. The green is in reflection of the neighbouring Royal Botanical Garden.^[134]

Major cultural centres organise parallel cultural events housed in unique buildings:

Centrocentro is an exhibition space in Cibeles Palace, formerly the Palace of Communications and now the City Hall. Two social areas have been set up and offer catalogues and publications about current exhibitions and cultural events along the Art Walk. Near these social areas are two large street maps showing the 59 institutions, monuments and buildings of special interest that make the Art Walk such a diverse experience.

The Fine Arts Circle (Círculo de Bellas Artes), built by Antonio Palacios, is one of Madrid's oldest arts centres and one of the most important private cultural centres in Europe. It is a multidisciplinary centre with activities ranging from visual art to literature, science to philosophy, film and to the performing arts. Nowadays it hosts exhibitions, shows, film screenings, conferences and workshops; its radio programming and magazine Minerva play an important part in the country's cultural life.

Matadero Madrid, literally "Madrid Abattoir", is a complex situated by the river Manzanares whose buildings are an architectural ensemble devoted to performance arts, managed and programmed by the Teatro Español. Matadero is a flexible area that allows the autonomous operation of three interconnected spaces: a theatre café, which accommodates small-scale shows; a large stage, for all sorts of genres and more experimental options; and a third building for dressing rooms and areas for training, debate, analysis and rehearsing new productions.

Conde Duque cultural centre has expanded the amount of space dedicated to culture and art. The new installations now accommodate a theatre, an exhibition hall and an auditorium with a year-round program.

The Museum Cerralbo contains funds that include works by El Greco, Tintoretto and Zurbarán, apart from an important collection of armor, porcelain and numismatics, in a 19th-century palace.

The Museum of the history of Madrid, formerly called Museo Municipal, houses pieces related to the history of the city in an important baroque building designed by the architect Pedro de Ribera.

The Wax Museum of Madrid, located opposite the Plaza de Colón, houses more than four hundred wax figures, showing the history of Spain through different scenarios. It also features figures of contemporary characters such as Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Andrés Iniesta, Cristiano Ronaldo, Antonio Banderas and Woody Allen, among others.

The Railway Museum, located in the building that was once the Delicias Station, hoards a collection of locomotives and wagons that have been part of the history of the Renfe and the companies that preceded it. It is organized by tractions: steam, diesel and electric; There is also a space dedicated to modeling, to fixed material and the Sala Talgo.

Other museums in the capital are the Costume Museum, the Public Art Museum (formerly the Open Air Sculpture Museum of La Castellana), the Museum of Origins of Madrid (former San Isidro Museum), the Geomineral Museum , the ONCE Tiflological Museum, the Museum of Arts and Popular Traditions of the Autonomous University of Madrid or the Museum of Aeronautics and Astronautics (Museo del Aire) of Cuatro Vientos.

Madrid has been one of the great centres of Spanish literature. Some of the best writers of the Spanish Golden Century were born in Madrid, including: Lope de Vega (Fuenteovejuna, The Dog in the Manger, The Knight of Olmedo), who reformed the Spanish theatre, a work continued by Calderon de la Barca (Life is a Dream), Francisco de Quevedo, Spanish nobleman and writer known for his satires, which criticised the Spanish society of his time, and author of El Buscón. And finally, Tirso de Molina, who created the character Don Juan. Cervantes and Góngora also lived in the city, although they were not born there. The homes of Lope de Vega, Quevedo, Gongora and Cervantes are still preserved, and they are all in the Barrio de las Letras (District of Letters).

Other writers born in Madrid in later centuries have been Leandro Fernandez de Moratín, Mariano José de Larra, Jose de Echegaray (Nobel Prize in Literature), Ramón Gómez de la Serna, Dámaso Alonso, Enrique Jardiel Poncela and Pedro Salinas.

The "Barrio de las Letras" (Quarter of Letters) owes its name to the intense literary activity developed over the 16th and 17th centuries. Some of the most prominent writers of the Spanish Golden Age settled here, as Lope de Vega, Quevedo or Góngora, and the theatres of Cruz and Príncipe, two of the major comedy theatres of that time. At 87 Calle de Atocha, one of the roads that limit the neighbourhood, was the printing house of Juan Cuesta, where the first edition of the first part of Don Quixote (1604) was published, one of the greatest works of Spanish literature. Most of the literary routes are articulated along the Barrio de las Letras, where you can find scenes from novels of the Siglo de Oro and more recent works like "Bohemian Lights". Although born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, realist writer Benito Pérez Galdós is credited with making Madrid the setting for many of his stories, underpinning what has come to be known as the Madrid Galdosiano.^[135]

Madrid is home to the Royal Academy of Spanish Language (RAE), an internationally important cultural institution dedicated to language planning by enacting legislation aimed at promoting linguistic unity within the Hispanic states; this ensures a common linguistic standard, in accordance with its founding statutes "to ensure that the changes undergone [by the language] [...] not break the essential unity that keeps all the Hispanic".^[136]

Madrid is also home to another international cultural institution, the Instituto Cervantes, whose task is the promotion and teaching of the Spanish language as well as the dissemination of the culture of Spain and Hispanic America.

The National Library of Spain is the largest major public library in Spain. The library's collection consists of more than 26,000,000 items, including 15,000,000 books and other printed materials, 30,000 manuscripts, 143,000 newspapers and serials, 4,500,000 graphic materials, 510,000 music scores, 500,000 maps, 600,000 sound recording, 90,000 audiovisuals, 90,000 electronic documents, more than 500,000 microforms, etc.^[137]

The nightlife in Madrid is one of the city's main attractions with tapas bars, cocktail bars, clubs, jazz lounges, live music venues and flamenco theatres.

Nightlife and youth cultural flourished in the 1980s while Madrid's mayor Enrique Tierno Galván (PSOE) was in office. At this time, the cultural movement called La Movida gathered around Plaza del Dos de Mayo. Nowadays, the Malasaña area is known for its alternative scene.

Some of the nightlife destinations include the neighbourhoods of Bilbao, Tribunal, Atocha, La Latina, Usera, Barrio de las letras, Alonso Martínez or Moncloa, together with the Puerta del Sol area (including Ópera and Gran Vía, both adjacent to the popular square) and Huertas (Barrio de las Letras), destinations which are also filled with tourists day and night. The district of Chueca has also become a hot spot in the Madrilenian nightlife, especially for the gay population. Chueca is known as the gay quarter, comparable to The Castro district in San Francisco.

Usually in Madrid people do not go out until later in the evening and do not return home until early in the morning. A typical evening out could start after 12:00 AM and end at 6:30 AM.

The city has venues for performing alternative art and expressive art. They are mostly located in the centre of the city, including in Ópera, Antón Martín, Chueca and Malasaña. There are also several festivals in Madrid, including the Festival of Alternative Art, the Festival of the Alternative Scene.^{[138][139][140][141]}

The neighbourhood of Malasaña, as well as Antón Martín and Lavapiés, hosts several bohemian cafés/galleries. These cafés are typified with period or retro furniture or furniture found on the street, a colourful, nontraditional atmosphere inside, and usually art displayed each month by a new artist, often for sale. Cafés include the retro café Lolina and bohemian cafés La Ida, La Paca and Café de la Luz in Malasaña, La Piola in Huertas and Café Olmo and Aguardiente in Lavapiés.

In the neighbourhood of Lavapiés, there are also "hidden houses", which are illegal bars or abandoned spaces where concerts, poetry readings and^{[142][143][144]} the famous Spanish botellón (a street party or gathering that is now illegal but rarely stopped).

The Auditorio Nacional de Música ^[145] is the main venue for classical music concerts in Madrid. It is home to the Spanish National Orchestra, the Chamartín Symphony Orchestra^[146] and the venue for the symphonic concerts of the Community of Madrid Orchestra and the Madrid Symphony Orchestra. It is also the principal venue for orchestras on tour playing in Madrid.

The Teatro Real is the main opera house in Madrid, located just in front of the Royal Palace, and its resident orchestra is the Madrid Symphony Orchestra.^[147] The theatre stages around seventeen opera titles (both own productions and co-productions with other major European opera houses) per year, as well as two or three major ballets and several recitals.

The Teatro de la Zarzuela is mainly devoted to Zarzuela (the Spanish traditional musical theatre genre), as well as operetta and recitals.^[148][149] The resident orchestra of the theatre is the Community of Madrid Orchestra.

The Teatro Monumental is the concert venue of the RTVE Symphony Orchestra.^[150]

Other concert venues for classical music are the Fundación Joan March and the Auditorio 400, devoted to contemporary music.

Madrid hosts the largest plaza de toros (bullring) in Spain, Las Ventas, established in 1929. Las Ventas is considered by many to be the world centre of bullfighting and has a seating capacity of almost 25,000. Madrid's bullfighting season begins in March and ends in October. Bullfights are held every day during the festivities of San Isidro (Madrid's patron saint) from mid May to early June, and every Sunday, and public holiday, the rest of the season. The style of the plaza is Neo-Mudéjar. Las Ventas also hosts music concerts and other events outside of the bullfighting season.

Since Spain legalised same-sex marriage in July 2005,^[151] Madrid has become one of the largest hot spots for LGBT culture. With about 500 businesses aimed toward the LGBT community, Madrid has become a “Gateway of Diversity”.^[152]

Madrid's Pride Parade began in 1977, in the Chueca neighbourhood, which also marked the beginning of the gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual rights movement after being repressed for forty years in a dictatorship.^[153] This claiming of LGBT rights has allowed the Pride Parade in Madrid to grow year after year, becoming one of the best in the world. In 2007, this was recognised by the European Pride Owners Association (EPOA) when Madrid hosted Europride, the Official European Pride Parade. It was hailed by the President of the EPOA as “the best Europride in history”.^[152] In 2017, Madrid celebrated the 40th anniversary of their first Pride Parade by hosting the WorldPride Madrid 2017 ^[188] . Numerous conferences, seminars and workshops as well as cultural and sports activities took place at the festival, the event being a “kids and family pride” and a source of education. More than one million people attended the pride's central march.^[154] The main purpose of the celebration was presenting Madrid and the Spanish society in general as a multicultural, diverse, and tolerant community.^[153]

The main annual international events held in Madrid are:

Madrid is home to La Liga football club giant Real Madrid, who play their home games at the Santiago Bernabéu. The club is one of the most widely supported teams in the world and their supporters are referred to as madridistas or merengues (Meringues). Real Madrid was selected as the best club of the 20th century (FIFA Club of the Century), being the current leader of the European teams ranking and the most valuable sports team in the world. Real is also the worldwide leader with a record 26 international titles, being the current holders of the FIFA Club World Cup.

Their successful hometown rivals, Atlético Madrid, are also well-supported in the city and play their home games at the Metropolitano Stadium. Their supporters are referred to as atléticos or colchoneros (The Mattressers), in reference to the team's red and white jersey colours.^[155] Atlético is considered a European elite team, having reached in the last ten seasons, three UEFA Europa League titles and two UEFA Champions League finals. Historically nationwide, Atletico has won ten Leagues and ten Cups.

Madrid has hosted four European Cup/Champions League finals at the Bernabéu, and the 2019 final was played at the Metropolitano. As well, the Bernabéu has hosted the final matches for the national teams competitions UEFA Euro 1964 and 1982 FIFA World Cup.

Madrid boasts a main place in Spanish basketball, with two ACB clubs, both playing their home games at the Palacio de Deportes (WiZink Center). The Real Madrid's basketball section (founded in 1931) is one of the most decorated european basketball teams, having won most Euroleague throphies (10) than any other team. Madrid's other professional basketball club is Estudiantes another longstanding ACB team, founded in 1948.

Regarding international competitions, the city hosted the final matches for the 1986 and 2014 FIBA World Cups and the EuroBasket 2007, both held at the Palacio de Deportes.

State Education in Spain is free, and compulsory from 6 to 16 years. The current education system is called LOE (Ley Orgánica de Educación).^[156]

Madrid is home to many public and private universities. Some of them are among the oldest in the world, and many of them are the most prestigious universities in Spain.

The National Distance Education University (Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia; UNED) has as its mission the public service of higher education through the modality of distance education. At more than 205,000 students (2015), UNED has the largest student population in Spain and is one of the largest universities in Europe. Since 1972, UNED has sought to translate into action the principle of equal opportunity in access to higher education through a methodology based on the principles of distance learning and focused on the needs of the student.

The Complutense University of Madrid (Universidad Complutense de Madrid; UCM) is the second largest university in Spain after UNED and one of the oldest universities in the world. It has over 11,000 staff members and a student population of 117,000. Most of the academic staff is Spanish. It is located on two campuses, the main one of Ciudad Universitaria in the Moncloa-Aravaca district, and the secondary campus of Somosaguas, located outside the city limits in Pozuelo de Alarcón and founded in 1971.^[157][158] The Complutense University of Madrid was founded in Alcalá de Henares, old Complutum, by Cardinal Cisneros in 1499. Nevertherless, its real origin dates back to 1293, when King Sancho IV of Castile built the General Schools of Alcalá, which would give rise to Cisnero's Complutense University. During the course of 1509–1510 five schools were already operative: Artes y Filosofía (Arts and Philosophy), Teología (Theology), Derecho Canónico (Canonical Laws), Letras (Liberal Arts) and Medicina (Medicine). In 1836, during the reign of Isabel II, the University was moved to Madrid, where it took the name of Central University and was located at San Bernardo Street. Subsequently, in 1927, a new University City (Ciudad Universitaria) was planned to be built in the district of Moncloa-Aravaca, in lands handed over by the King Alfonso XIII to this purpose. The Spanish Civil War turned the University City into a war zone, causing the destruction of several schools in the area, as well as the loss of part of its rich scientific, artistic and bibliographic heritage. In 1970 the Government reformed the High Education, and the Central University became the Complutense University of Madrid. It was then when the new campus at Somosaguas was created to house the new School of Social Sciences. The old Alcalá campus was reopened as the independent UAH, University of Alcalá, in 1977. Complutense also serves to the population of students who select Madrid as their residency during their study abroad period. Students from the United States for example, might go to Madrid on a program like API (Academic Programs International) and study at Complutense for an intense immersion into the Spanish Language. After studying at the University, students return home with a fluent sense of Spanish as well as culture and diversity.^[159]

The Technical University of Madrid (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid; UPM), is the top technical university in Spain. It is the result of the merge of different Technical Schools of Engineering. It shares the Ciudad Universitaria campus with the UCM, while it also owns several schools scattered in the city centre and additional campuses in the Puente de Vallecas district and in the neighbouring municipality of Boadilla del Monte.

The Autonomous University of Madrid (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid; UAM) was instituted under the leadership of the physicist, Nicolás Cabrera. The Autonomous University is widely recognised for its research strengths in theoretical physics. Known simply as La Autónoma by locals, its main site is the Cantoblanco Campus, located at the North of the municipality, close to its boundaries with the neighbouring municipalities of Alcobendas, San Sebastián de los Reyes and Tres Cantos.

Located on the main site are the Rectorate building and the Faculties of Science, Philosophy and Fine Arts, Law, Economic Science and Business Studies, Psychology, Higher School of Computing Science and Engineering, and the Faculty of Teacher Training and Education. The UAM is considered the institution to study Law in Spain,^[160] The Medical School is sited outside the main site and beside the Hospital Universitario La Paz.^[161]

The private Comillas Pontifical University (Universidad Pontificia Comillas; UPC) has its rectorate and several faculties in Madrid. The private Nebrija University is also based in Madrid. Some of the big public universities headquartered in the surrounding municipalities also have secondary campuses in Madrid proper: it is the case of the Charles III University of Madrid (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid; UC3M) with its main site in Getafe and an educational facility in Embajadores (after signing a deal with the regional government and the city council in 2011)^[162] and the King Juan Carlos University (Universidad Rey Juan Carlos; URJC) having its main site in Móstoles and a secondary campus in Vicálvaro. The private Camilo José Cela University (Universidad Camilo José Cela; UCJC) has a postgrade school in Chamberí.

IE Business School (formerly Instituto de Empresa) has its main campus on the border of the Chamartín and Salamanca districts of Madrid. IE Business School recently ranked #1 in WSJ's 2009 rankings for Best MBA Programs under 2 years. It scored ahead of usual stalwarts, INSEAD and IMD, giving it top billing among International MBA programs. Although based in Barcelona, both IESE Business School and ESADE Business School also have Madrid campuses. These three schools are the top-ranked business schools in Spain, consistently rank among the top 20 business schools globally, and offer MBA programs (in English or Spanish) as well as other business degrees. Other Madrid business schools and universities that have MBA programs include: EAE Business School (in English and Spanish), the Charles III University of Madrid through the Centro de Ampliación de Estudios (in English or Spanish); the Comillas Pontifical University (in Spanish only) and the Technical University of Madrid (in Spanish only).

Madrid is served by several roads and three modes of public surface transport, and two airports, one of them being almost two different airports. A great many important road, rail and air links converge on the capital, providing effective connections with other parts of the metropolitan region and with the rest of Spain and other parts of Europe.

Cars (except for hybrid and electric vehicles as well as residents and guests) were banned in the Madrid Central low-emission zone in 2018.^[163][164] Pollution in the area dropped following the ban.^[165][163] In 2016 it was announced that Madrid will stop the use of all diesel powered cars and trucks within the next decade.^[166]

Madrid is the centre of the most important roads of Spain. Already in 1720, the Reglamento General de Postas enacted by Philip V configurated the basis of a radial system of roads in the country.^[167]

Madrid features a number of the most prominent autovías (fast dualled highways), part of the State Road Network. Clock-wise starting from the north: the A-1 (Madrid–Irún–French border), A-2 (Madrid–Zaragoza–Barcelona–French border), A-3 (Madrid–Valencia), A-4 (Madrid–Córdoba–Sevilla–Cádiz), A-5 (Madrid–Badajoz–Portuguese border) and the A-6 (Madrid–A Coruña). The A-42, another highway connecting Madrid to Toledo, is also part of the State Network.

The M-607 connects Madrid to the Puerto de Navacerrada. It is a fast dualled highway in its initial stretch from Madrid to Colmenar Viejo, and part of the Regional Road Network (in relation to the concerning administration, not to the technical features of the road).

Due to the large amount of traffic, new toll highways were built parallel to the main national freeways. Their names are R-2, R-3, R-4 and R-5 and they were intended to provide a paid alternative to the often overcrowded free radials. However, except the R-3, they do not end close to the M-30 innermost ring road, as the R-2 finishes in the M-40, the R-4 in the M-50 and the R-5 in the M-40.

Also Madrid road network includes four orbital ones at different distances from the centre. The innermost ring-road, the M-30, is the only one with its path strictly located within the Madrid municipal limits. It is owned by the Madrid City Council and operated by Madrid Calle 30, S.A. It is the busiest Spanish road, famous for its traffic jams. A significant portion of the southern part runs underground parallel to the Manzanares, with tunnel sections of more than 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) in length and 3 to 6 lanes in each direction.

The second ring-road, the M-40 (part of the State Road Network) circles the city, while also extending to other surrounding municipalities. A NW stretch of the road runs underground, below the southern reaches of the Monte de El Pardo protected area.

The M-45 partially circles the city, connecting the M-40 and M-50, passing through areas like Villaverde and Vallecas in the South-East of the municipality.

The M-50, the Madrid's outer ring road, connects municipalities and cities in the metropolitan area, like Fuenlabrada, Móstoles, Getafe, Leganés in the South and Boadilla del Monte and Las Rozas in the West.

There are four major components of public transport, with many intermodal interchanges. The Consorcio Regional de Transportes de Madrid (CRTM) coordinates the public transport operations across multiple providers in the region,^[168][169] harmonizing fares for the commuter rail, rapid transit, light rail and bus transport services provided by different operators.

The Metro is the rapid transit system serving Madrid as well as some suburbs. Founded in 1919, it underwent extensive enlargement in the second half of the 20th century.^[170] It is the second longest metro system in Europe (after London's) at 294 kilometres (183 miles). As of 2019, it has 302 stations.^[171] Only the Métro of Paris has more stations. It features 13 lines; 12 of them are colour-coded and numbered 1 to 12 (Line 1, Line 2, Line 3, Line 4, Line 5, Line 6, Line 7, Line 8, Line 9, Line 10, Line 11 and Line 12), while the other one, the short Ramal (R), links Ópera to Príncipe Pío.^[170]

Cercanías Madrid is the commuter rail service used for longer distances from the suburbs and beyond into Madrid, consisting of nine lines totalling 578 kilometres (359 miles) and more than 90 stations. With fewer stops inside the centre of the city they are faster than the Metro, but run less frequently. This system is connected with Metro (presently 22 stations) and Light Metro. The lines are named: C-1, C-2, C-3, C-4, C-5, C-7, C-8, C-9, C-10, respectively.

There is a dense network of bus routes, run by the municipal company Empresa Municipal de Transportes (or EMT Madrid), which operates 24 hours a day; special services called "N lines" are run during nighttime. The special Airport Express Shuttle line connecting the airport with the city centre features distinctively yellow buses. In addition to the urban lines operated by the EMT, the green buses (interurbanos) connect the city with the suburbs. The later lines, while also regulated by the CRTM, are often run by private operators.

Almost half of all journeys in the metropolitan area are made on public transport, a very high proportion compared with most European cities.^{[96] []} Madrid has 15723 taxis around all the city.

The taxicabs are regulated by a specific sub-division of taxi service, a body dependent of the Madrid City Council. The authorisation entails a badge for the vehicle and a license for the driver, who has to be older than 18.^[172] Since the 1970s, the fleet of taxis has remained stable roughly around 16,000 vehicles, accounting for 15,600 in 2014.^[173]

In terms of longer-distance transport, Madrid is the central node of the system of autovías, giving the city direct fast road links with most parts of Spain and with France and Portugal. It is also the focal point of one of the world's three largest high-speed rail systems, Alta Velocidad Española (AVE), which has brought major cities such as Seville and Barcelona within 2.5 hours travel time. There are now 2,900 kilometres (1,800 miles) of AVE track, connecting Madrid with 17 provincial capitals, and further lines are under construction.^{[96] []}

Also Spain business are designing new high speed trains which will be the new generation AVE 104 like Talgo AVRIL.

Madrid is also home to the Madrid-Barajas Airport, the sixth-largest airport in Europe, handling over 40M passengers annually, of whom 70% are international travellers, in addition to the majority of Spain's air freight movements.^{[96] []} Madrid's location at the centre of the Iberian Peninsula makes it a major logistical base.^{[96] []} Madrid-Barajas Airport has 4 Terminals and also the terminal 4S, called Satellite terminal, this terminal is 2 kilometres (1.2 miles) from the terminal 4 and connected by an Automated People Mover System (AMP) train. The smaller (and older) Cuatro Vientos Airport has a dual military-civilian use and hosts several aviation schools. The Torrejón Air Base, located in the neighbouring municipality of Torrejón de Ardoz, also has a secondary civilian use aside from the military purpose.

Outside the region limits, the Ciudad Real Central Airport project has tentatively intended to become another commercial airport serving Madrid.^[174] It is under the process of reopening after years of closure due to financial difficulties of the airport's former parent company.^[175]

List of Madrid's twin towns, sister city agreements (acuerdos):^[176]

List of Madrid's twin towns, sister city 'minutes' (actas):^[176]

Madrid is part of the Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities^[178] establishing brotherly relations with the following cities through the issuing of a collective statement in October 1982: