The National Palace of Ajuda: The Castle and Royal Treasure Museum

The National Palace of Ajuda is one of the most beautiful palaces in Lisbon. This building in Neoclassical style was built in the first half of the 19th century. For that period of time, the palace was too grandiose and needed additional investments, so it could not be completed.

The location for the creation of the castle was chosen after the earthquake, which took place in 1755. But all the members of the royal family were safe. As a result of the incident, the king was so impressed that he paid special attention to a safe location for his palace. In order to make it more resistant, it was built out of wood. But the wooden palace was still burnt down by fire, and the next project was built of stone.

In 1862, under the direction of the architect Joaquim Possidonio Narciso da Silva, the unfinished palace received a new life. The major transformations touched the interior decoration of the palace, according to the ideas of the bourgeoisie of the 19th century, being aimed at improving the level of comfort.

The Royal Palace of Ajuda was the official residence of the Portuguese monarchy, being used for official ceremonies, grand balls, and banquets. After the proclamation of the Republic in 1910, the palace was closed until 1968, when it got a new life and was opened for visitors as a museum.

In 2018, a new reconstruction of the building was made. It included the reconstruction of the west wing. There was installed the vault of the Royal Treasure Museum. Nowadays the museum exhibits a collection of more than a thousand unique artworks, including luxury Portuguese Crown Jewels.

The renovation project was designed by the architect Joao Carlos Santos. The modern version of Ajuda Palace includes 34 museum halls, which reproduce the environment in which the Portuguese monarchs lived, showing it with historical accuracy and close attention to the details.

The magnificent collection includes furniture, porcelain, crystal, priceless tapestries, chandeliers, jewelry, and various decorative and functional items made using advanced technologies of their time (XV-XIX centuries). All the presented options can be seen and photographed.

The National Palace of Ajuda is often the place for official ceremonies and ceremonial acts of the Presidency of the Republic. One more additional idea on how to spend time here is to visit Ajuda Botanical Garden, a small but amazingly picturesque place with endemic species and modern landscape design