Palacio da Pena

Palacio da Pena (1885)

Architect: Baron von Eschwege

Location: Sintra, Portugal

Style: Victorian

Materials: Stone, wood, brick

“There can be no surprise that Lord Byron and William Beckford fell in love with its beauty.”

C. T. North, Guia dos Castelos Antigos de Portugal (2002)

“In 1838 the German Prince Ferdinand Saxe-Coburg Gotha acquired the ruins of the Pena Monastery at auction. At the time he had the intention of restoring the building to its original glory. However, perhaps influenced by an illicit after, he changed his plans and in 1840 the price commissioned the German engineer Baron von Eschwege (1777-1855) to built a country residence and grounds. The architect proposed radical design for an awe-inspiring new palace and gardens at Pena that were happily accepted by the prince.

The turreted building sits unevenly across giant rocks on a mountaintop 18 miles (30 km) from Lisbon.

It possesses an awkward yet charming style. The colourful palace is influenced by a dizzying array of architectural styles: Bavarian, Romantic, Gothic, and Moorish are the principal influences, but there are Renaissance details, too, in the form of the original sixteenth-century chapel by master builder Diego Boitoc and sculptor Nicolau Chanterene, both of whom worked on the Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon.

When finished, the building was mainly used as the summer residence of the royal family. The palace is full of precious objects, collections, and works of art.

The landscaped palace gardens are spectacular, and there are excellent views of the Sintra mountains.

The original ornamental ponds, bird fountains, groves of exotic trees, and expanses of wild flowers all remain intact. Later, Prince Ferdinand was to build a more modest chalet in the grounds of the palace of his second wife, the Countess of Edla, who also contributed ideas for the gardens. She inherited the estate in 1885 when the prince died just as the palace was completed. She later sold it to the state. In 1910 Palacio da Pena (Palace of Pena) was listed as a Portuguese National Monument, and in 1995 the town of Sintra was listed as a World Heritage Site.” (MDC)

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