Who is Almudena de Arteaga, Duchess of Infantado and owner of a park in Madrid: passion for writing and extensive family assets

Almudena de Arteaga in an archive image (Europa Press)

Almudena de Arteaga has returned to the headlines for issues that have little to do with her professional life as a writer of historical novels. In recent days, the Duchess of Infantado has dominated the headlines of the national press after the continuous criticism of the residents of Manzanares el Real, who have been left without their emblematic children’s park, the Duque del Infantado.

After a long legal battle with the Madrid City Council, the aristocrat has recovered the 3,000 square metre space that her grandfather, Íñigo Loyola de Arteaga y Falguera, ceded to the Madrid municipality of Manzanares el Real in 1975. And although in 2015, the land lease expired after having been extended several times, it continued to be used by the City Council. Faced with this situation, Arteaga tried to carry out several agreements, but none of them ended up convincing both parties. Finally, she opted to resort to the courts to recover the land that was being illegally occupied by the Community of Madrid, as she herself stated in a letter addressed to the director of El País.

“The natural value is incalculable. Urban planning-wise, it is or should be a crime to demolish it. It seems as if we are returning to the Middle Ages, having to bow to the whims of the aristocracy,” a local resident told El País about the demolition of the park, which is currently closed to the public.

Almudena de Arteaga. (EuropaPress)

As her obligation is to “maintain the heritage” that she inherited from her “father, grandfather and great-grandfather”, this is not the only legal dispute she has undertaken. The Duchess of Infantado also wants to recover the castle of Manzanares el Real, a property that also belongs to her. Currently, she is immersed in a new legal process to recover the castle of the Mendoza family, which, as of today, remains open to the public, at least until next January 5, the date on which its contract for use and public management ends.

Although her name has been the protagonist of numerous headlines in recent weeks, Almudena de Arteaga is popularly known for her work as a writer of historical novels, being one of the most prestigious in Spain. The aristocrat, who comes from a family with a long tradition, is characterized by her great involvement in each event, place or character that she brings to life through her books. Among the countless characters she has recreated, the Princess of Éboli stands out, an ancestor of hers to whom she dedicated her first and successful novel.

She inherited her title of Duchess of Infantado after the death of her father, the 19th Duke of Infantado, although it was initially to be received by her brother Íñigo de Arteaga, who died in a tragic plane accident in 2012. In this way, the numerous properties and castles throughout Spain and an archive belonging to the National Historical Archive have become her domain.

Almudena de Arteaga at the presentation of her book ‘The Ivory Slave’ (Europa Press)

The extensive family estate is spread across different cities in Spain, ranging from the Infantado Palace in Guadalajara, considered a jewel of the Isabelline Gothic Renaissance, to the Lazcano Palace in Guipúzcoa, the Calahorra Castle in Granada, to the Monclova Castle in Seville.