Royal Palace of Naples

Last updated
Royal Palace of Naples
Il Palazzo reale (cropped).jpg
Royal Palace façade
Royal Palace of Naples
General information
TypePalace
Architectural style Italian Baroque, Neo-Classical
Location Naples, Italy
AddressPiazza del Plebiscito 1
Coordinates 40°50′10″N14°14′59″E / 40.8362°N 14.2496°E / 40.8362; 14.2496
Website
palazzorealenapoli.it
Invalid designation
Official namePalazzo Reale di Napoli
TypeNon-movable
CriteriaMonument
The facade on Piazza del Plebiscito, seen from the south PalazzoRealeNapoli0878.jpg
The façade on Piazza del Plebiscito, seen from the south
Main stairs Palazzo Reale, Napoli.JPG
Main stairs
The throne room Napoli - Palazzo Reale3.jpg
The throne room

The Royal Palace of Naples (Italian : Palazzo Reale di Napoli; Neapolitan : Palazzo Riale 'e Napule) is a palace, museum, and historical tourist destination located in central Naples, southern Italy.

Contents

It was one of the four residences near Naples used by the House of Bourbon during their rule of the Kingdom of Naples (1735–1816) and later the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (1816-1861). The others were the palaces of Caserta, Capodimonte overlooking Naples and Portici on the slopes of Vesuvius.

For the last century the Biblioteca Nazionale Vittorio Emanuele III, the third largest Italian National Library, has occupied a large part of the building. There are also large royal apartments, kept fitted with period furniture, paintings and other elements, that are open for visiting by tourists.

History

The palace is on the site of an earlier residence, which had housed the former Viceroy Don Pedro de Toledo, Marquis of Villafranca. Construction on the present building was begun in the 17th century by the architect Domenico Fontana. [1] Intended to house King Philip III of Spain on a visit never fulfilled to this part of his kingdom, instead it initially housed the Viceroy Fernando Ruiz de Castro, Count of Lemos. By 1616, the façade had been completed, and by 1620, the interior was frescoed by Battistello Caracciolo, Giovanni Balducci, and Belisario Corenzio. The decoration of the Royal Chapel of the Assumption (Cappella Reale dell'Assunta) was not completed until 1644 by Antonio Picchiatti.

In 1734, with the arrival of Charles III of Spain in Naples, the palace became the royal residence of the Bourbons. Giovanni Antonio Medrano was employed in 1734, without knowing the scope of his work, on the Royal Palace of Naples. In the short span of time between 1734 and 1738, Medrano supervised the renovation and expansion works of the viceregal palace (1734). [2] On the occasion of his marriage to Maria Amalia of Saxony in 1738, Francesco De Mura and Domenico Antonio Vaccaro helped remodel the interior. It was Charles who build the other three palaces in locations more peripheral to the city center. Further modernization took place under Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies. In 1768, on the occasion of his marriage to Maria Carolina of Austria, under the direction of Ferdinando Fuga, the great hall was rebuilt and the court theater added. During the second half of the 18th century, a "new wing" was added, which in 1927 became the Victor Emmanuel III National Library. By the 18th century, the royal residence was moved to the Palace of Caserta, as that inland town was more defensible from naval assault, as well as more distant from the often-rebellious populace of Naples.

During the Napoleonic occupation the palace was enriched by Joachim Murat and his wife, Caroline Bonaparte, with Neoclassic decorations and furnishings. However, a fire in 1837 damaged many rooms, and required restoration from 1838 to 1858 under the direction of Gaetano Genovese. Further additions of a Party Wing and a Belvedere were made in this period. At the corner of the palace with San Carlo Theatre, a new facade was created that obscured the viceregal palace of Pedro de Toledo.

In 1922, it was decided (by the Decree of the Minister Antonino Anile) to transfer here the contents of the National Library (until then in the palace of National Archaeological Museum of Naples). The transfer of library collections was made by 1925.

The library suffered from bombing during World War II and the subsequent military occupation of the building caused serious damage. Today, the palace and adjacent grounds house the famous Teatro San Carlo, the smaller Teatrino di Corte (recently restored), the Biblioteca Nazionale Vittorio Emanuele III, a museum, and offices, including those of the regional tourist board.

Statues of kings of Naples

In 1888, King Umberto I of Italy made changes to the western façade side of the building (fronting on Piazza del Plebiscito), by displaying in niches a series of statues of prominent rulers of Naples since the foundation of the Kingdom of Naples in the 12th century. The statues are displayed in chronological order, based on the dynasty of each ruler. The series starts with Roger the Norman (sculpted by Emilio Franceschi), and ends with Victor Emmanuel II, the tallest statue and the last to be added (sculpted by Francesco Jerace).

The other figures represent:

None of the statues refers to the Bourbon dynasty, not even Charles of Bourbon, who is actually engraved with the name of Charles III (his Spanish numeral).

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles III of Spain</span> King of Spain from 1759 to 1788

Charles III was King of Spain in the years 1759 to 1788. He was also Duke of Parma and Piacenza, as Charles I (1731–1735); King of Naples, as Charles VII; and King of Sicily, as Charles III (1735–1759). He was the fourth son of Philip V of Spain and the eldest son of Philip's second wife, Elisabeth Farnese. He was a proponent of enlightened absolutism and regalism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingdom of Naples</span> Italian state (1282–1816)

The Kingdom of Naples, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was established by the War of the Sicilian Vespers (1282–1302), when the island of Sicily revolted and was conquered by the Crown of Aragon, becoming a separate kingdom also called the Kingdom of Sicily. This left the Neapolitan mainland under the possession of Charles of Anjou. Later, two competing lines of the Angevin family competed for the Kingdom of Naples in the late 14th century, which resulted in the death of Joanna I by Charles III of Naples. Charles' daughter Joanna II adopted King Alfonso V of Aragon as heir, who would then unite Naples into his Aragonese dominions in 1442.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pietro Colletta</span> Neapolitan general and historian (1775–1831)

Pietro Colletta was a Neapolitan general and historian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teatro di San Carlo</span> Opera house in Naples, Italy

The Real Teatro di San Carlo, as originally named by the Bourbon monarchy but today known simply as the Teatro (di) San Carlo, is a historic opera house in Naples, Italy, connected to the Royal Palace and adjacent to the Piazza del Plebiscito. It is the oldest continuously active venue for opera in the world, having opened in 1737, decades before either Milan's La Scala or Venice's La Fenice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Filippo Juvarra</span> Italian architect

Filippo Juvarra was an Italian architect, scenographer, engraver and goldsmith. He was active in a late-Baroque architecture style, working primarily in Italy, Spain, and Portugal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Palace of Caserta</span> Former royal residence in Caserta, Italy

The Royal Palace of Caserta is a former royal residence in Caserta, Campania, 35km north of Naples in southern Italy, constructed by the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies as their main residence as kings of Naples. Located 35 km north of the historic center of Naples, Italy, the complex is the largest palace erected in Europe during the 18th century. In 1997, the palace was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site; its nomination described it as "the swan song of the spectacular art of the Baroque, from which it adopted all the features needed to create the illusions of multidirectional space". The Royal Palace of Caserta is the largest former royal residence in the world, over 2 million m3 in volume and covering an area of 47,000 m2 and a floorspace of 138,000 square meters is distributed in the five stories of the building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Museo di Capodimonte</span> Art museum and historic site in Naples, Italy

Museo di Capodimonte is an art museum located in the Palace of Capodimonte, a grand Bourbon palazzo in Naples, Italy designed by Giovanni Antonio Medrano. The museum is the prime repository of Neapolitan painting and decorative art, with several important works from other Italian schools of painting, and some important ancient Roman sculptures. It is one of the largest museums in Italy. The museum was inaugurated in 1957.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Bitonto</span> 1734 battle of the War of the Polish Succession

The Battle of Bitonto was a Spanish victory over Austrian forces near Bitonto in the Kingdom of Naples in the War of Polish Succession. The battle ended organized Austrian resistance outside a small number of fortresses in the kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Castel Nuovo</span> Medieval castle in Naples, Italy

Castel Nuovo, often called Maschio Angioino, is a medieval castle located in front of Piazza Municipio and the city hall in central Naples, Campania, Italy. Its scenic location and imposing size makes the castle, first erected in 1279, one of the main architectural landmarks of the city. It was a royal seat for kings of Naples, Aragon and Spain until 1815.

Giovanni Antonio de Medrano was the "Major Regius Praefectus Mathematicis Regni Neapolitani", chief engineer of the kingdom, architect, brigadier, and teacher of Charles III of Spain and his brothers the infantes. Giovanni was born in Sciacca in the Kingdom of Sicily. Giovanni Antonio de Medrano designed the Obelisk of Bitonto, the Palace of Capodimonte and the Teatro di San Carlo in Italy for Charles III of Spain. Medrano’s career is particularly studied, from his stay in Seville as a teacher for the royal princes, and his influence on Prince Charles’ architectural taste, to his projects in the Kingdom of Naples and the royal palace at Capodimonte.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giovanni Battista Amendola</span> Italian sculptor (1848–1887)

Giovanni Battista Amendola (1848–1887) was an Italian sculptor from Sarno, Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Caserta</span> Roman Catholic diocese in Italy

The Diocese of Caserta is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in Campania, southern Italy. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Naples. In 1818 Pope Pius VII united this see with the diocese of Caiazzo, but Pope Pius IX made them separate sees. In 2013 in the diocese of Caserta there was one priest for every 1,703 Catholics; in 2016, there was one priest for every 2,008 Catholics. The diocesan Major Seminary currently (2019) has four seminarians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingdom of the Two Sicilies</span> State formed from the kingdoms of Sicily and Naples (1816–60)

The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was a kingdom in Southern Italy from 1816 to 1861 under the control of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, a cadet branch of the Bourbons. The kingdom was the largest sovereign state by population and land area in Italy before the Italian unification, comprising Sicily and most of the area of today's Mezzogiorno and covering all of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prince Pasquale, Count of Bari</span> Prince of the Two Sicilies; eighth son of Ferdinand II

Prince Pasquale of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Count of Bari, full Italian name: Pasquale Baylen Maria del Carmine Giovanni-Battista Vincenzo-Ferreri Michele Arcangel Francesco di Paola Ferdinando Francesco di Assisi Luigi-Re Alfonso Gaetano Giuseppe Pietro Paolo Gennaro Luigi-Gonzaga Giovanni Giuseppe della Croce Gaspare Melchiore Baldassare Alberto Sebastiano Giorgio Venanzio Emanuele Placido Andrea-Avelino Rocco Pacifico Francesco di Geronimo Felice Teziano Ana Filomena Sebazia Lucia Luitgarda Apollina, Principe di Borbone delle Due Sicilie, Conte di Bari was the eleventh child of Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies and his second wife Maria Theresa of Austria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Palace of Portici</span>

The Royal Palace of Portici is a former royal palace in Portici, Southeast of Naples along the coast, in the region of Campania, Italy. Today it is the home of the Orto Botanico di Portici, a botanical garden operated by the University of Naples Federico II. These gardens were once part of the large royal estate that included an English garden, a zoo and formal parterres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Descendants of Charles III of Spain</span>

Charles III of Spain is the third surviving son of the first Bourbon King of Spain Philip V and Elisabeth Farnese. The descendants of Charles III of Spain, are numerous. Growing up in Madrid till he was 16, he was sent to the Italian Sovereign Duchy of Parma and Piacenza which, through his mother Elisabeth of Parma, was considered his birthright. Charles married only once, to the cultured Princess Maria Amalia of Saxony, with whom he had 13 children; 8 of these reached adulthood and only 4 of these had issue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palace of Capodimonte</span>

The Royal Palace of Capodimonte is a large palazzo in Naples, Italy. It was formerly the summer residence and hunting lodge of the Bourbon kings of the Two Sicilies, one of the two royal palaces in Naples. Today, the main building holds the main Neapolitan museum for paintings, and much other post-ancient art, in the National Museum of Capodimonte. This has the best collection of paintings from the distinct tradition of Neapolitan art, and also many works from the Farnese Collection.

References

  1. The "signature" of Domenico Fontana is engraved on some bases of the columns of the facade of the Royal Palace of Naples. The text states: "DOMENICVS FONTANA PATRITIVS Romanvs / AVRATAE Militiae EQVES / ET COMES PALATINVS INVENTOR."
  2. "MEDRANO, Giovanni Antonio - Treccani". Treccani (in Italian). Retrieved 2024-01-01.