Seminary of Nobles of Madrid

The building, in whose construction Pedro de Ribera was allegedly involved,^[1] was initially occupied by the Seminary of Nobles of Madrid, an institution founded in 1725 and linked to the Imperial College, where young men from noble families, as well as military personnel, were educated.^[2]

From 1790 to 1800, the Seminary's financial situation continued to deteriorate due to the devaluation of its assigned sources of income. In 1808, following the Napoleonic invasion, Spanish soldiers moved into the building to organize the defense, and classes had to be suspended. In 1809, a decree by Joseph Bonaparte transformed it into a military hospital. The building was also used as a prison and General Riego was imprisoned within its walls before being executed^[1] on November 7, 1823.

In 1836, with the abolition of the privileges of the nobility, the Seminary closed its doors permanently, and the building was used to house the University of Alcalá during its move to Madrid, before being repurposed as a military hospital in 1841,^[3] consolidating several existing city hospitals that served the same purpose.^[4] The hospital's facilities included a chemical laboratory and the Anatomical Pathological Museum. A fire completely destroyed the building between February 5 and 8, 1889.^[5][6]