Near the town of "El Escorial" about a thirty minutes drive northwest of the Spanish capital city of Madrid is a site called "The Seat of Philip the Second". This post is about the Montpellier Maple tree located at the site. For its species it is a very large and impressive. Popular belief is that Philip II sat under this tree to oversee the construction of the massive monastery accross the valley. Judging from the tree however it seems rather unlikely that this tree could be old enough to have given shade to the Spanish king in the mid 1600´s.
The tree stands beside large granite bolders like the one below. On top of a large rock to the left of the tree is the actual "Seat of Felipe II" which is a seat carved right into the top of the rock and is accessable by a stone stairway.
About 50 yards from Philip´s seat is the "Ermita de la Virgen de Gracia" (Hermitage of the Virgin of Grace) that was built in the XVI century. This site lies within a forrest called "El bosque de La Herrería".
Below is a view of the monastery as seen through the trees from the Montpellier Maple tree.
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