Archive

The Archive of the Museo Cerralbo first appeared under this name in 1924, with the foundation of the Museum, after the State accepted the testamentary bequest of the 17th Marquis of Cerralbo. The Archive's organic foundation can be found in the documentation generated by the Museum in the course of its activities. From its foundation to the present day, the Administrative Records collection has steadily grown, reflecting the evolution of the institution over the course of its first century of existence.

In addition to the administrative records, the Archive also had a historical division from very early on, which today comprises a total of eleven collections. The first and most extensive of these contains the personal papers of the 17th Marquis of Cerralbo, bequeathed in 1922 to his daughter-in-law Amelia del Valle Serrano, 2nd Marquise of Villa-Huerta. She left these to the Museum on her death in 1927, along with her own records. This collection includes the Marquis' outstanding political career as the Carlist leader, his scientific contributions as an academic and archaeologist, his lively social life, his travels, and part of his administrative records. However, it does not include the documentation of the noble houses to which he belonged, as these files were distributed among the successors to his titles. In the second half of the 20th century, the Archive's documentary collections were subsequently enriched through various donations and purchases, the latest addition being the collection of María Francisca Martín Bellefroid (2018).

The Cerralbo Museum Archive currently consists of a total of eleven collections:

• Administrative Records
• 17th Marquis of Cerralbo Records
• Pablo Vázquez Records
• Pacheco de Leyva Records
• Luis Cortés Echanove Records
• Aguilera Fontcuberta Records
• Aguilera y Gamboa Records
• Carlism Records - IX Count of Casasola del Campo
• Jaime Parladé Sanjuanena Records
• Juan and Encarnación Cabré Records
• Maria Francisca Martin Bellefroid Records

The Archive stands out for the variety and richness of its holdings, both in terms of chronology - with documents ranging from the 15th to the 21st century - and in terms of typology (it includes letters, telegrams, minutes, invoices, wills, postcards, menus, photographs, accounting and financial documentation, literary manuscripts, travel notebooks, and more).

Access to the Museo Cerralbo Archive is free, although to enter and consult the collections, you must first arrange an appointment by writing to the following e-mail address: archivo.cerralbo@cultura.gob.es. In addition, the cataloguing and digitisation work carried out has made it possible to provide researchers with digital access to the Luis Cortés Echanove and Jaime Parladé Sanjuanena collections through the CERES portal (see the attached Guide).