Other treasures include luxurious tapestries and porcelain belonging to France's last empress and wife of Napoleon III, Maria Eugenia de Montijo, who died at the palace in 1920. The Liria Palace was occupied by Communists during Spain's 1936-39 Civil War and was gutted by several fires that left just the four outer walls standing. She made headlines in 2011 when at the age of 85 she married a civil servant who was 24 years younger. But the decision to allow the public in Liria Palace has divided the Albas. "My home will become a showcase like a Zara window," he wrote, referring to the popular Spanish-owned clothing chain.

Source: The Local November 22, 2019 08:48 UTC