Peleș Castle
Peleș Castle Castelul Peleș | |
---|---|
General information | |
Architectural style | Neo-Renaissance |
Town or city | Sinaia |
Country | Romania |
Coordinates | 45°21′35″N 25°32′34″E / 45.35984°N 25.54265°E |
Construction started | 1873 |
Completed | 1914 |
Cost | 16,000,000 gold Romanian (approximate) lei (approx. $US 120 million today) – Cost is until the castle's opening in 1883. Further major improvements were made until 1914. |
Client | King Carol I of Romania |
Owner | Romanian Royal Family[1] |
Design and construction | |
Architect(s) | Johannes Schultz Carol Benesch Karel Liman |
This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2021) |
Peleș Castle (
Location
The complex is northwest of the town of Sinaia, which is 48 kilometres (30 mi) from Brașov and 124 kilometres (77 mi) from Bucharest. In the southeastern Carpathian Mountains, the complex is composed of three monuments: Peleș Castle, Pelișor Castle, and the Foișor Hunting Lodge.
History
When King
The first three design plans submitted for Peleș were copies of other palaces in Western Europe, and King Carol I rejected them all as lacking originality and being too costly. German architect Johannes Schultz won the project by presenting a more original plan, something that appealed to the King's taste: a grand palatial alpine castle combining different features of classic European styles, mostly following Italian elegance and German aesthetics along Renaissance lines. Works were also led by architect
The cost of the work on the castle undertaken between 1875 and 1914 was estimated to be 16,000,000 Romanian lei in gold. Between three and four hundred men worked on the construction. During the construction phase, Queen Elisabeth of Wied wrote in her journal:
Italians were masons, Romanians were building terraces, the Gypsies were
coolies. Albanians and Greeks worked in stone, Germans and Hungarians were carpenters. Turks were burning brick. Engineers were Polish and the stone carvers were Czech. The Frenchmen were drawing, the Englishmen were measuring, and so was then when you could see hundreds of national costumes and fourteen languages in which they spoke, sang, cursed and quarreled in all dialects and tones, a joyful mix of men, horses, cart oxen and domestic buffaloes.
Construction slowed during the Romanian War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire in 1877–1878, but soon afterwards the plans grew in size and construction was quite rapid. In the 1883 inaugural journey of the Orient Express to Bucharest, passengers from Paris were invited to Peleș Castle by Queen Elisabeth of Wied as King Carol I ceremoniously put the last brick in place to celebrate the castle's completion.[3] This initiative by Queen Elisabeth was part of an effort to promote Peleș Castle and Romania's Carpathians to a broader audience.[4] Peleș Castle had its official Royal Ball of Inauguration on 7 October 1883. Thereafter, Carol II of Romania was born at the castle in 1893, giving meaning to the phrase "cradle of the dynasty, cradle of the nation" that Carol I bestowed upon Peleș Castle. Carol II lived in Foișor Villa for periods during his reign. Princess Maria died there in 1874.
After the forced
Ceaușescu did not like the castle very much and rarely visited. In the 1980s, some of the timber was infested with
Throughout its history, the castle hosted some important personalities, from royalty and politicians to artists. One of the most memorable visits was that of Kaiser Franz Joseph I of Austria-Hungary on 2 October 1896, who later wrote in a letter:
The Royal Castle amongst other monuments, surrounded by extremely pretty landscape with gardens built on terraces, all at the edge of dense forests. The castle itself is very impressive through the riches it has accumulated: old and new canvases, old furniture, weapons, all sort of curious, everything placed with good taste. We took a long hike in the mountains, afterwards we picnicked on the green grass, surrounded by the Gypsy music. We took many pictures, and the atmosphere was extremely pleasant.
Artists like
The castle was featured in the 2009 film The Brothers Bloom. The exterior of the castle is used to represent a large estate in New Jersey, the home of an eccentric billionaire played by Rachel Weisz.[5]
The castle was featured in the Netflix original film A Christmas Prince and its two sequels, A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding and A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby. It was also featured in the Hallmark Channel movie A Princess for Christmas (2011) and Royal Matchmaker (2018).
Description
By form and function, Peleș is a
Peleș Castle has a 3,200-square-metre (34,000 sq ft) floor plan with over 170 rooms, many with dedicated themes from world cultures (in a similar fashion as other Romanian palaces, such as Cotroceni Palace). Themes vary by function (offices, libraries, armouries, art galleries) or by style (Florentine, Turkish, Moorish, French, Imperial); all the rooms are lavishly furnished and decorated to the slightest detail. There are 30 bathrooms. The establishment has collections of statues, paintings, furniture, arms and armor, gold, silver, stained glass, ivory, porcelain, tapestries and rugs. The collection of arms and armour has over 4,000 pieces, divided between Eastern and Western war pieces and ceremonial or hunting pieces, spreading over four centuries of history. Oriental rugs come from many sources: Bukhara, Mosul, Isparta, Saruk and Smyrna. The porcelain is from Sèvres and Meissen; the leather is from Córdoba. The hand-painted stained glass vitralios, which are mostly Swiss.
A towering statue of King Carol I by Raffaello Romanelli overlooks the main entrance. Many other statues are present on the seven Italian neo-Renaissance terrace gardens, mostly of Carrara marble executed by the Italian sculptor Romanelli. The gardens also host fountains, urns, stairways, guarding lions, marble paths and other decorative pieces.
Peleș Castle shelters a painting collection of almost 2,000 pieces. Angelo de Gubernatis (1840–1913) was an Italian writer who arrived in 1898 in Sinaia as a guest of the Royal Family:
Inaugurated in 1883, Peleș Castle is not only a pleasant place during summer time; it has been conceived to be also a national monument, meant to keep the trophies of the
Holy Stephen the Great, and Michael the Brave. In a proud attitude, wearing whether a fur cap or with the gold crown on their heads, they impress through the brilliant dressing, in which the white of ermine blends with the emerald green or the red of the large mantle. On the right and on left side of the two rulers, as servant knights, four shield bearers carry the Romanian Provinces' escutcheons. Inside the Queen's library, over the groups of children symbolizing poetry and science, there is the image of Ulfilas (311–383 AD) a Goth religious ruler, from the northern side of Danube River, translating the Bible in their language and bringing his contribution in spreading Christianity, a Christian apostle of the Romans, and the image of Dante Alighieri, the creator of western poetry. Passing the library and getting into the dormitory, we will meet the image of Genies and Allegories of Painting and Music, as well as a series of legendary themes. Inside the apartments reserved for the honor guests, a number of coat-of-arms were shining through their heraldic abundance, speaking about the ancestors of the Royal Family. But among all, the glass paintings from the Peleș Castle are, beyond any doubt, the most profound and shining. Here, the subjects are taken out of Alecsandri's poetry.
Museum
Public visits are made within guided tours. One of the tours is limited to the ground floor, another adds the first floor and the complete tour includes the second floor.[6] Admission is charged, and there is an additional photography fee. The visiting hours are from 9 am to 5 pm; Wednesday through Sunday. On Tuesdays, the hours are 11 am to 5 pm. The castle is closed on Mondays. These visiting hours are subject to change by the Romanian Culture Ministry. The castle is closed in November each year for maintenance and cleaning.
The most notable grand rooms are:[7]
Holul de Onoare (The Hall of Honour) was finished completely only in 1911, under the guidance of Karel Liman. It spreads over three floors. Walls are dressed in exquisitely carved woodwork, mostly European walnut and exotic timbers.
Apartamentul Imperial (The Imperial Suite) is believed to be a tribute to the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph I, who visited the palace as a friend of the Romanian Royal Family. Hence, decorator Auguste Bembe preferred the sumptuous Austrian Baroque in style of Empress Maria Theresa. A perfectly preserved five-hundred-year-old Cordoban tooled leather wall cover is the rarest of such quality.
Sala Mare de Arme (The Grand Armory or The Arsenal) is where 1,600 of the 4,000 pieces of weaponry and armor reside. One of Europe's finest collection of hunting and war implements, timelined between 14th and 19th century, are on display. The king added pieces used in his victory against the
Sala Mică de Arme (The Small Armory) is where predominantly Oriental (mostly Indo-Persian, Ottoman and Arab) arms and armor pieces are on exhibit, many of them made of gold and silver, and inlaid with precious stones. Included are
Sala de Teatru (The Playhouse) is decorated in
Sala Florentină (The Florentine Room) combines revived elements of the Italian Renaissance, mostly from Florence. Most impressive are the solid bronze doors executed in Rome; ateliers of Luigi Magni; and the Grand Marble Fireplace executed by Paunazio with Michelangelo motifs.
Salonul Maur (The Moorish Salon) was executed under the guidance of Charles Lecompte de Nouy, and is meant to embody elements of North-African and Hispanic Moorish style. Mother-of-pearl inlaid furniture, fine Persian Sarouk and Ottoman Isparta rugs, and Oriental weapons and armor are perhaps the most expressive elements. The salon has an indoor marble fountain.
Salonul Turcesc (The Turkish Parlor) emulates an Ottoman "joie de vivre" atmosphere—a room full of Turkish İzmir rugs and copperware from Anatolia and Persia. It was used as a smoking room for gentlemen. Walls are covered in hand-made textiles like silk brocades from the Siegert shops of Vienna.
In something remarkable in comparison to most recent-era royal families, the monarchs shared a bedroom.
Present day
Originally personal property of the
Michael I's heir
In August 2016, the body of
See also
- List of castles in Romania
- Seven Wonders of Romania
- Tourism in Romania
- Villages with fortified churches in Transylvania
References
- ^ "Participarea Președintelui României la dineul oficial de la Castelul Peleș - Familia Regală a României / Royal Family of Romania". Romaniaregala.ro. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
- ^ Paul Constantin, Universal Dictionary of Architects (Dicționar Universal al Arhitecților), București, Editura Stiințifică si Enciclopedică, 1986 p. 39.
- ISBN 9781559707633.
- ^ "Pagina de istorie: Orientul Express oprea la Sinaia, pentru ca turiştii să poată vedea Peleşul". RFI România: Actualitate, informaţii, ştiri în direct (in Romanian). 10 August 2017. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
- ^ "The Brothers Bloom". IMDb.
- ^ "Ticket prices". Peles.ro. Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
- ^ "Peleş Castle". Lonely Planet.
- ^ "Events of 26th March 2016". Retrieved 20 August 2021.
- ^ "Events of 10th May at Peles Castle". Retrieved 20 August 2021.
- ^ "Drapelul regal, arborat pentru prima data dupa aproape 70 de ani, la Castelul Peles". Ziare.com. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
- ^ "Video 10 mai, Ziua Regalității". Stiri.tvr.ro. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
- ^ "Military and Religious Ceremony in the Hall of Honour". Retrieved 20 August 2021.
- ^ "Homage to The Queen at Peles Castle". Retrieved 20 August 2021.
- ^ "Regele Mihai I, pentru ultima oară la Castelul Peleș" [King Michael at Peles Castle for the last time] (in Romanian). Royal Family of Romania. 13 December 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
External links
- Official website
- Peleș Royal Heritage Association - NGO dedicated to protecting, conserving, restoring and enhancing the Peleș Royal Estate.