It is the monastery and palace house in which Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire and King of Spain resided from after his abdication until his death.

In 1556 Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, retired to the Monastery of Yuste, near Cuacos de Yuste, after having abdicated the Spanish crown in favour of his son Philip II of Spain and the crown of the Holy Roman Empire in favour of his brother Ferdinand I.

Nonetheless, the monastery had to be expanded that year to make room for the emperor and the 50 or 60 members of his entourage.

A fictitious visit by Carlos, Prince of Asturias, and other characters provides the moonlit setting for Act V of the original version of Giuseppe Verdi's opera Don Carlos, and Yuste is also the setting for both scenes of Act II of that long and celebrated opera.

[1] It was left in ruins until 1949, when the Spanish government restored it at the behest of Francisco Franco.