Known as the Portuguese Versailles, the Queluz Palace is the masterpiece of Baroque in the country and one of the best excursions to do from Lisbon. The idea is to let yourself be carried away, if only for a day, by the elegance and lavishness of the times of the Kings and courtiers, the Counts, the Dukes and the palace intrigues.
In 1747 Pedro III, while still an infant, ordered the construction of the Queluz Palace without knowing that a few years later, in 1755, a great earthquake would devastate Lisbon and turn this palace into the official residence of the Braganzas and the heart of the Kingdom of Portugal during a time.
In 1807, with the arrival of the French, the royal family moved to Brazil and the palace began its decline. At the beginning of the last century it was ceded to the State and many years were dedicated to restoration to restore all its splendor.
The Queluz Palace was built on the old Casa de Campo del Marqués del Castelo Domingo, where works were carried out over the years to transform the building into the new palace. The works were a great success, to the point of turning it into the beautiful baroque building that we can see today.
Upon arrival, the first thing that strikes the visitor is its main façade, so sober that it seems to want to hide the true grandeur of this construction. The first curiosity of this palace is that the most beautiful façade was oriented to the rear, facing the gardens.
This façade has two asymmetric wings painted in pastel colors, decorated with successive balconies and the view from the gardens is an indispensable snapshot.
The visit to the interior of the palace is a tour of great rooms where it is easy to imagine parties and palace dances.
Some of the most impressive are the tiles room, which represents scenes from the colonial past of the kingdom, or the Chamber of the King, where the representation corresponds to fragments of Don Quixote.
Of course you have to reach the Throne Room, which is exquisitely decorated and covered with mirrors, reminiscent of the famous Hall of Mirrors in Versailles.
If the interior hits, the gardens become a walk in the clouds. The Malta Garden and the Pensil Garden form the upper gardens. Both are rectangular in shape, lined with box hedges and full of fountains, sculptures and vases. A true open air museum and the best place to get lost.
Beautiful balustrades decorated with sculptures separate the upper gardens of the park through the Knights entrance. This is located in front of the Great Waterfall, presided over by lead and marble sculptures and lined with Cascais stones.
In the park, the Channel of the Tiles stands out, a large canal covered in white and blue tiles and decorated with beautiful scenes, as is the exterior of the canal, all inspired by different engravings of various themes.
And these are just a handful of the many surprising corners during the walk through the gardens or the Queluz Palace, which in exchange for so much beauty only asks the visitor enough time to be able to show them everything. To show you a part of Lisbon.
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