The new headquarters of the Bank acquired the 18,000 square meters of land belonging to the rectangular plot of the former Marqués de Casa-Irujo Palace.

[6] Precisely, just in front of his scaffolding, an attempt of murder was made on April 13, 1913, by King Alfonso XIII for the anarchist Sancho Alegre who shot him twice with his revolver.

It was at this time that the building was extended to Barquillo Street, by the architect Manuel Cabanyes, in a project that did not respect the continuity with the original.

It then became part of Santander Group's assets as the two entities merged and was eventually sold to the Madrid City Council, which was subsequently exchanged with the Spanish Government in 2003 in exchange for the Palacio de Comunicaciones (another building designed by Palacios).

This category includes those buildings that are considered of some relevance both in the history of art and in Spanish or Madrid architecture, or that are a milestone in the urban fabric of the city.

The Cervantes Institute icon (design by Enric Satué) is placed on the cover of the building, located between the caryatids in October 2006.

The remodeled building will accommodate the offices that will attend the administration, the exhibition halls and an auditorium for a capacity of 1200 people.

Media related to Instituto Cervantes, Madrid (ex Banco del Río de la Plata) at Wikimedia Commons