Located in the district of Chamberí, this imposing palatial building,  designed by  architect Antonio Palacios together with Joaquín Otamendi, was built between 1908 and 1916. It was commissioned by Dolores Romero, widow of the steel business owner Curiel y Blasi, who wanted a building that would house a hospital, the headquarters of her Foundation, to care for workers who did not have sufficient economic means. It now houses the Ministry of Transport, Housing, and Infrastructure

The former Hospital de Jornaleros de San Francisco de Paula (a hospital for workers also known as Hospital de Maudes) is spread across a full block, and the radial layout is centred around a central octagonal courtyard, divided into four sections, two occupied by the rectangular pavilions of the hospital wards, and two others that housed the service buildings. The corridors and stairwells are open and spacious to facilitate good ventilation and lighting of the rooms.

Five different types of stone were used for its construction: white limestone, granite, slate, marble, and siliceous stone. The stone facades are covered with ceramic decoration, originally created by Daniel Zuloaga. The interior is decorated with ceramics from Seville and traditional tile work.

During the Civil War and post-war periods, the hospital was used for military purposes, caring for soldiers and their families, as well as civilian personnel in the service of the military administration and their families.

From 1964 to 1984, the building was left in a state of absolute abandonment, until it was bought by Madrid's Regional Government, which began work on its renovation under the orders of architect Andrés Perea Ortega, who decided not to remove the original elements that had been preserved and to design furniture that would establish a dialogue with the work of Antonio Palacios.

The building won the Annual City Hall Award in 1917 and was declared an Artistic Historical Monument in 1979. Since 1997 it has been included in the catalogue of  protected buildings with special protected status in Madrid’s General Urban Plan.