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Sintra |
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| Portugal > Tourism > Lisbon > Sintra > Queluz Palace > Pousada | |
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| Begun in 1747 by the Infante Dom Pedro (later to become Dom Pedro
III) on the basis of a former country mansion of the Marquises of Castelo
Rodrigo, Queluz Palace (classified as a National Monument) at that time
began to be adapted for use as a summer seat of the Royal Family. The main body of the Palace, erected by 1758, with its low sinuous forms and harmonious intimist decoration, was completed after the marriage of the Infante Dom Pedro to Dona Maria Francisca, the future Dona Maria I (1760), at which time the opulent interior halls were embellished, as were the luxurious Palace gardens, which were endowed with Baroque fountains, statues and places for recreation. An important part in these improvements was taken by the great French architect Robillion (died 1782), who was responsible for the well known "Robillion Pavilion". |
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| Queluz, which has not infrequently been compared with Versailles Palace,
differs from Louis XIV's edifice (in fact of earlier date) in the sense
of scale and proportions revealed in its lines, perhaps with a more
balanced distribution of graphic values, within a neo-classicism as
yet not bound to the rococo formulae. Only the force and exuberance
of the pavilion conceived by Robillion, with its strong French and Austrian
influence, strikes a more "evolved" note, for all the rest
is thoroughly Portuguese, its scale and in the artistic spirit itself. A Pousada is located in the building formerly used by the Royal Guard of the Court Shows of the Portuguese Cavalry School at 11:00 every Thursdays between May and October (except in August). Guided Tour |
Situated 15 km from Old Quarter |
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| Portugal > Tourism > Lisbon > Sintra > Queluz Palace > Pousada | |
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Queluz
Palace |
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