Royal Palace of Naples

About

The Royal Palace of Naples (Italian: Palazzo Reale di Napoli) is a historic building located in Piazza del Plebiscito, in the historic center of Naples, Italy. Although the main entrance is located in this square, there are other accesses to the complex, which also includes the gardens and the Teatro di San Carlo, from the Piazza Trieste e Trento, Piazza del Municipio and Via Acton.

The palace was built from 1600 onwards by the architect Domenico Fontana as the residence of the Spanish viceroys, and in the mid-17th century Francesco Antonio Picchiatti made numerous improvements and interventions, such as the staircase and the chapel. Charles of Bourbon made it, from 1734, the main residence of the Bourbons of Naples for more than a hundred years, first as kings of Naples and Sicily (1734–1816) and later as kings of the Two Sicilies (1816–1861). It was also the residence of Joseph Bonaparte and Joachim Murat during French rule (1806–1815), under which extensive redecorations were carried out. The Bourbons made important and constant modifications to the interiors of the palace, relying on great artists such as Francesco de Mura or Francesco Solimena. However, after the fire of 1837...

At the end of the Aragonese domination, the Kingdom of Naples entered into the expansionist objectives of the French and the Spanish: both powers divided the territory with the signing of the Treaty of Granada (1500). In any case, the treaty was not respected and under the command of the Great Captain Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba the Spanish conquered the kingdom in 1503, thus beginning the Spanish viceroyalty. Although this period, which lasted more than two hundred years, has been considered a dark and devolutionary period, but in fact the city enjoyed a notable cultural ferment and a dynamic bourgeoisie, as well as a cutting-edge merchant fleet, capable of competing with those of Seville and Flanders.

Under the command of Pedro Álvarez de Toledo y Zúñiga, the construction of a viceregal palace was decided, designed by the architects Ferdinando Manlio and Giovanni Benincasa. The construction of the palace began in 1543 and was completed shortly afterwards. The new palace was born at a time when the viceroys dedicated their efforts to the urban reorganization of Italian cities: in Naples, the walls and forts were remodeled and the so-called Quartieri Spagnoli were built.

When Fernando Ruiz de Castro, count of Lemos, arrived in the city as viceroy Together with his wife, Catalina de Zúñiga, he decided to build a new palace. The official argument to justify its construction was to honor Philip III of Spain by hosting him solemnly in view of an imminent visit by the monarch that, in the end, never took place. However, contemporary analysis indicates that the viceroy knew that Philip III had never intended to move his court to Naples and that the palace was actually built to satisfy the viceroy's own wishes.

The area chosen for the new construction was located at the western end of the city, on the hill of Pizzofalcone, in a position that allowed the port to be dominated and that would facilitate an escape route for the king in case of an enemy attack. There it would be next to the Viceregal Palace, using, in fact, part of its gardens, and next to the Castel Nuovo, the former royal residence, reinforcing the courtly character of the area. The choice of this location was also encouraged by the fact that the city was expanding towards the west: in this way, with such an important building in the vicinity, the price of land in the areas of Pizzofalcone and Chiaia would increase.

The project was entrusted to Domenico Fontana, considered at the time the most prestigious architect in the western world, who held the position of chief engineer of the kingdom. Fontana had fallen into disgrace a few years earlier, due to the death of Sixtus V in 1590, the pope who had commissioned him to carry out numerous works in Rome.

The first stone was laid in 1600, in the square that, in those years, bore the name of Piazza San Luigi. The final project for the palace was published by Fontana in 1604 under the title Dichiarazione del Nuevo Regio Palagio. However, the original plans used by the architect to begin the work were lost and, in fact, Fontana himself lamented this:

I have not been able to print the designs for the work I have done in this city of Naples and its kingdom due to lack of time.

In any case, a plan drawn by Giovanni Giacomo is preserved in Rome, probably before 1651, which shows how the palace was intended to have been according to the architect's first wishes. In any case, the original design does not seem to have differed too much from its final appearance, although undeniable modifications were made during its construction. In this design, both the main west and north facades were the same, while a C-shaped structure was supposed to have been built along the south side facing the sea. This design was so popular that, even though the palace was still under construction, the press of the time often depicted it as it was in the plans rather than as it was actually being built. Domenico Fontana was so enthusiastic about the project he had been commissioned to do that he had the following inscriptions inscribed on two columns of the façade:

- Domenicus Fontana Patricius Romanus Eques Auratus comes palatinus inventor

However, only the main façade of this project was completed; while the south-east arm was not built and the south façade remained unfinished and disordered until it was completed in 1843.

The architectural style developed by the architect was late Renaissance, with a central courtyard and an interior loggia on the first floor, thus adapting the project to the demands of the time; that is, to a function of ostentation rather than a fortified residence. It also had a large square located right in front of the palace for military parades and public events. The works were carried out diligently both under the mandate of the Count of Lemos and under that of his son and successor Francisco Ruiz de Castro. Under Viceroy Juan Alonso Pimentel de Herrera, Count of Benavente, the works slowed down, probably due to the limited availability of resources after the wars and crises that hit Spain or even as a matter of honour: the Pimentels showed little interest in completing a work begun by the Ruiz de Castro.

In 1607, after the death of his father, Giulio Cesare Fontana took over the direction of the works. The construction of the palace continued rapidly, until in 1610 Pedro Fernández de Castro, also the son of Fernando Ruiz de Castro, was appointed viceroy. In 1616, the new headquarters of the university was built at the end of Via Toledo, that is, at the opposite end to the site on which the Royal Palace was being built. It was named Palazzo degli Studi and would be the future headquarters of the National Archaeological Museum of Naples. Thanks to some notes by Alessandro Beratta and the writings in a travel diary by Confalonieri, we have evidence of the state of the works in that year:

- That day we saw the structure of the royal palace, which has a facade of peperino worked. On the first floor there are twenty-one windows and three railings; on the second floor, there are as many small windows without railings. Below, at ground level, there is a large portico, which faces the street and serves as a guard, carried out by two companies of soldiers. Inside the palace is not finished. It has two large staircases and a large square courtyard with porticos, of which two sides were still uncovered.

Shortly afterwards, although the exact date is not known, the interior decoration work began with the execution of the paintings by Giovanni Battista Caracciolo, Belisario Corenzio and Giovanni Balducci.

From the time the palace was completed, it was inhabited by 22 Spanish viceroys and 11 Austrian viceroys. Far from remaining unchanged, the Royal Palace continued to transform itself according to the tastes of each viceroy.

The Duke of Alba (1622–1629) was commissioned to finish some vaults begun by the Count of Lemos and dedicate them to the family glories. The Palatine Chapel was completed under the Duke of Medina de las Torres, from 1646 to 1648, with a large altarpiece by José de Ribera ; in 1656 the stucco work on the vault of the interdeux of the windows was carried out, which had to be redone after 1688 due to an earthquake that collapsed the roof. They were not finished until 1705.

Under the government of Íñigo Vélez de Guevara el Mozo, Count of Oñate, the original two-ramp staircase of Fontana, judged undignified, was completely renovated by Francesco Antonio Picchiatti, following the wishes of the Count of Oñate, the works took place from 1651 to 1666. The two main rooms of the palace were also redecorated: the "Great Hall" and the "Hall of the Viceroys", which began to be adorned with portraits of the viceroys from 1503.

Exteriorly, between 1666 and 1671, when Pedro Antonio de Aragón was in power, the most notable addition took place with the construction of a small pavilion facing the sea, the so-called Belvedere, which would serve as a bedroom for the viceroys and later for the Bourbon sovereigns. Attached to it was a small garden terrace that grew over the decades to become the current "hanging gardens or Belvedere gardens".