President Sergio Matteralla on
Thursday unveiled extensions to the former Naples Bourbon royal
palace, the Reggia di Caserta, at the end of the year of
celebrations of architect Luigi Vanvitelli on the 250th
anniversary of his birth.
Italy's Versailles now has over 3,000 square metres more of
visitable space thanks to the 'reconquest' of what had been the
Grand Gallery.
It is the second biggest part of the sprawling palace and
grounds after the Palatine Chapel.
"These are places that ooze history and have now been restored
to their original destiny and splendour," said Culture Minister
Gennaro Sangiuliano, also present at the opening ceremony.
The UNESCO-listed Reggia di Caserta is the largest palace built
in Europe in the 18th century.
A World Heritage Site since 1997, it was described in its UNESCO
nomination as representing "the swansong of the spectacular art
of the Baroque, from which it adopted all the features needed to
create the illusions of multi-directional space".
Construction on the the Reggia, built to rival Louis XIV's
Paris chateau of Versailles, began in 1752 on the orders of
Charles VII of Naples, who worked closely with his architect
Luigi Vanvitelli.
Although Charles reportedly was filled with emotion at the
sight of Vanvitelli's grandly scaled model for the Reggia, he
never actually had a chance to use it as he abdicated in 1759 to
become King of Spain.
The Caserta project was instead left to his third son and
successor Ferdinand IV of Naples to complete on the site,
located about 40 kilometres north of Naples.
The palace complex, which has won awards for its beautiful
gardens, took nearly 100 years to complete.
In 1860, it became the property of the royal family of the
new Italian state, the Savoys, before finally ending up in State
hands in 1919.
Since then, it has served many functions.
At the end of World War II, the royal palace became the
seat of the Supreme Allied Commander, and in April 1945 was the
site of the signing of terms of the unconditional German
surrender in Italy.
As well, the courtyards, vestibules, park and Palatine
Chapel of the landmark have featured in several Hollywood
movies.
The building's interior has doubled as the Vatican in two
recent blockbusters - Mission: Impossible III and Ron Howard's
adaptation of the Dan Brown prequel to the Da Vinci Code, Angels
& Demons.
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