The most emblematic brothels in Madrid

Tuesday, 07 April 2020

It was in 1561 when King Felipe II decided to establish the Court permanently in Madrid. This decision was decisive for the history of the capital. King Habsburg's decision immediately meant that there were many people from the most diverse professions who settled in Madrid. Many prostitutes, as well, could not be less. Since then, as in all the great cities of the world, prostitution has been a constant presence in the history of Madrid and brothels or brothels have occupied a more or less prominent place in its urban geography.

Although now it is not clearly specified as such as cities like Hamburg or Amsterdam do, Madrid did have its own red light district centuries ago. This neighborhood, in which the then most famous brothels of Madrid were piled up, was located in the Huertas area, around the street that today, touristy and full of life, has that name. So many were the brothels that crowded in this area in the 17th century that the people of Madrid, when talking about it, used to say that in the street of Huertas there were more whores than doors and Felipe IV, to try, in some way, to control prostitution in the capital, projected, in 1623, to unify all the brothels of that area into one of great size and that would be located on Calle Mayor.

Entered in the eighteenth century, the largest and most famous brothels in Madrid moved to the area of Lavapiés and Antón Martín. So many were the brothels of smaller or larger size established in this area of Madrid at that time that the number of them has reached as many as 800. Whether or not the figure is exaggerated, the truth is that, in the eighteenth century, prostitution was widespread in Madrid, so much so that what was known as the Ronda del Pecado Mortal was founded, a brotherhood that was in charge of touring the streets from Madrid to invite prostitutes who exercised their profession in them to abandon it. In the 19th century, in 1865, an official count was made and, according to this, 7% of the female population in the capital of Spain was engaged in prostitution.

Whorehouses Madrid

The 20th century was marked in Spain by a fundamental event: the Civil War. The end of it brought with it the arrival of Francoism, a dictatorial political regime characterized, among other details, by the close collusion of the regime with the religious classes. The indoctrination from the official stays of the regime in the principles of Catholicism was constant and, with it, the implantation at all levels of what was intended to be a strict morality. This did not prevent, however, the proliferation of a series of nightclubs in which ministers, bullfighters, artists and aristocrats gathered.

In these Madrid hostess, a form of leisure was imitated that could remotely recall the American atmosphere of the happy 20s, and many luxury prostitutes found their clients there, winners of the war who immersed themselves in an environment in which champagne and cigars were the order of the day and in which the pretended moral principles with which the regime wanted to control the crotch of society were suspended.

Today, leaving Francoism behind and democracy established in our country, Madrid is a cosmopolitan city full of contrasts and life. It is said, and with good reason, that Madrid is a city that catches. And that vitality in Madrid has something, saving the distances, of a New Yorker. If it is often said that New York is the city that never sleeps, the truth is that life in Madrid does not go to sleep, far from it, when the sun goes down. Thus, those who want to enjoy Madrid's nightlife can do so in many and varied ways. One of them, of course, is to drop by one of its many brothels, brothels or escort agencies in Madrid to enjoy the company of a beautiful, sensual, friendly and exciting company lady.

Heirs to those alternative venues (among which we could mention the famous Chicote, the most famous meeting place of Madrid in those years and today turned into an authentic museum dedicated to the memory of those times) are, each with its own characteristics , each dedicated to its own type of clientele, venues such as D'Angelo (which opened in 1977 and is located at 151 Paseo de la Castellana), Hot Living Castellana (which has specialized in entertainment shows show girls and table dance), Feeling , Vive Madrid , Le Papillon , Pygmalion or La Gata de Azca , among others.

Where the hostess bar ends and where the brothel begins is something that can give for many discussions. The truth is that, today, for today there are many and very varied brothels that, with more or less class, with more or less glamor, can be found in Madrid. Some of the most exclusive of them are located in the El Viso area, a square bounded by the streets of Concha Espina (to the north), María de Molina (to the south), the Paseo de la Castellana and La Habana (at west) and Príncipe de Vergara street (to the east). In this area, full of chalets, palaces, high-class restaurants and first-class educational centers where the square meter is one of the most expensive in Madrid, we can find some of the most famous and emblematic brothels in Madrid. The Shadows, located in a hidden palace, would be one of them. The Five, another. The Geishas and the Barbarella, two more.

Madrid street prostitution

All of them close to each other and with an important dose of history behind them, these emblematic brothels of Madrid make the exclusive neighborhood of El Viso one of the most prime areas for prostitution in a city that has other neighborhoods and other areas in the that prostitution is practiced at less exclusive levels and in which there are much less elite dating houses. One of these areas, heir to the traditional Calle de la Ballesta, a street located in the Madrid neighborhood of Las Maravillas and famous for many years for having been the center of street prostitution in Madrid , is the one located today among the stops of Legazpi and Atocha metro, along and on Paseo de las Delicias.

Competing with the exclusive and historical brothels of El Viso and other areas of Madrid in exclusivity and from a much more modern perspective and according to current times we can also find in Madrid escort agencies that offer those gentlemen who want to enjoy the company of a sexy, beautiful and sensual escort girl, exclusive and dedicated, to contact her and make an appointment to live the one that, without a doubt, can only be described as a fiery and unforgettable adventure.