Palazzo del Quirinale

Palazzo del Quirinale Review

For centuries used as home of the popes, now official residence of the president of Italy, this spectacular palace was begun in 1574 by Pope Gregory XIII, who planned to use it as a summer residence, choosing the hilltop site mainly for its superb views. However, as early as 1592 Pope Clement VIII decided to make the palace, safely elevated above the malarial miasmas shrouding the low-lying location of the Vatican, the permanent residence of the papacy. It remained the official papal residence until 1870, in the process undergoing a series of enlargements and alterations by a succession of architects. When Italian troops under Garibaldi stormed Rome in 1870, making it the capital of the newly united Italy, the popes moved back to the Vatican and the Quirinale became the official residence of the kings of Italy. When the Italian people voted out the monarchy in 1946, the Quirinal Palace passed to the presidency of the Italian Republic. Visitable only on Sundays with sometimes a concert included, the state reception rooms are some of Italy's most majestic. You already get a fair idea of the palace's splendor from the size of the building, especially the interminable flank of the palace on Via del Quirinale. Behind this wall are the palace gardens, which, like the gardens of Villa d'Este in Tivoli, were laid out by Cardinal Ippolito d'Este when he summered here. Unfortunately, they are open to the public only once a year on Republic Day (June 2).