This floor was the setting of the day-to-day life of the family, made up of the Marquises of Cerralbo, Enrique and Inocencia and the latter’s children - the fruit if her first marriage - Antonio and Amelia del Valle Serrano, the Marquises of Villa Huerta. It was also where trusted visitors were welcomed.
Its domestic use and the family and historic circumstances brought about a succession of transformations to it. The first took place following the death of Antonio in 1900, and mainly affected the west wing. Many of the rooms that made up its private apartments were transformed into offices and summer lounges, due to the advantage provided by their orientation and opening to the garden at this time of year.
However, the most radical change came about in the 1940s and it involved the sacrifice of the authentic bedrooms and other rooms of daily use and service, at that time lacking museographical interest, in favour of galleries where the art collections were exhibited in a relaxed and didactic manner.
These are the reasons why the expository approach of this floor was undertaken as a re-creation and not as a faithful recuperation of the spaces, as occurred on the Main Floor. Whenever possible, this re-creation of settings was carried out using the pieces originally found in these rooms. However, the spaces have also been supplemented with pieces from the Villa-Huerta collection (from the Marquises’ palace at Santa Mª de Huerta) or even, although to a lesser degree, by purchasing antiques in the market.
The Summer reception is soberly decorated in keeping with a floor intended for daily use, with the typical furniture of these rooms in the 19th century: a stowage table, a cupboard and a large mirror.
The Red Lounge was the office the Marquis used on a daily basis, the place where he attended to the running of his estates, received suppliers and dispatched correspondence.
The Yellow Lounge, a summer office and dining room, has a seat upholstered in yellow Damask silk and the only completely preserved example of original wallpapering in the palace.
The Pink Room is a charming room, with views of the garden, where Amelia, Marquess of Villa-Huerta spent Spring evenings with her close friends on visiting days.
