The Royal Palace of Naples () 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, the palace had to be almost completely rebuilt by Gaetano Genovese, who finished the unfinished wings and gave a homogeneous appearance to the entire complex.
After the Italian unification (1861) it passed into the hands of the Savoy, until Victor Emmanuel III ceded it to the state in 1919. From the late 19th century, the western half of the palace was opened to the public as a museum of the Royal Apartment, and in 1924 its eastern half became the home of the National Library, uses that continue today.
History Background
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.
Construction (1600–1616)
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:
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:
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:
From this writing, it is clear that the work was almost finished at that time.
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.
The Viceregal Period (1616–1734)
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".
From 18 April to 2 June 1702, Philip V visited Naples, being therefore the first and only Spanish sovereign to stay in a palace originally intended to receive Philip III. In 1707 the Austrians took the city in the midst of the War of the Spanish Succession, beginning the government of the Austrian viceroys that did not bring substantial changes to the palace.
The first Bourbons (1734–1806)
In May 1734 Charles of Bourbon entered Naples, the city became, once again, the capital of an autonomous kingdom and not a viceroyalty. The new king found the Royal Palace empty and dilapidated, since, since its construction, it had been normal for viceroys to move in with their furniture and, once their mandate had ended, to take it with them. This was done by the last Austrian viceroys, Giulio Visconti Borromeo Arese, in March 1734. All that remained in the palace were the magnificent painted vaults made by Neapolitan artists of the 17th century.
The renovation works were directed by the military engineer Giovanni Antonio Medrano, later architect of the Royal Palace of Portici, and initially focused on the king's apartments facing the Piazza della Repubblica. Although the works were completed in 1740, by 1738, the year of Charles's wedding with Maria Amalia of Saxony, they were almost ready. The palace was then structured around two main rooms or apartments:
the King's Apartment facing the square and composed of: the Great Hall or Royal Room, the Room of the Guard of Corps, the Room of the Officers, the Antechamber of the Titleholders, the Room of the Hand-Kissing or of the Throne, the Gallery, the Room "where His Majesty dresses", the "secret" Chapel of His Majesty, the Belvedere Room or where the king sleeps, the "toilet" and the Room "where His Majesty's valet sleeps". the Queen's Apartment facing the sea and composed of: the Room of the Viceroys, the Room of the Guard of Corps, the Second Antechamber, the Room of the Kissing Hands, the Room of the Alcove or where the queen sleeps, the Oratory, the "toilet", the Chambermaids' Room and the Queen's Boudoir.