PALAZZO REALE
Residence of the different families that governed the city of Milan.
On the right-hand side of the Duomo, preceded by a wide esplanade, stands the Royal Palace. In 1138, the Broletto Vecchio, the seat of Milan's administration during its communal period, stood on the same site. It later became the residence of the various families who ruled the city (the Torriani, the Visconti, the Sforza). Later, the palace was occupied by Spanish governors and Ferdinand of Austria, who entrusted its remodeling to the architect Giuseppe Piermarini, the architect of the La Scala theater, between 1773 and 1778. The neoclassical façade, grand staircase and most of the salons date from this period. Among the most representative rooms is the "Hall of the Caryatids". Adorned with frescoes and powerful caryatid pillars, this room housed the court theater until 1776, when a fire destroyed the whole complex. It was later used as a grand reception hall. Today, the Palazzo Reale is a busy center for temporary exhibitions. Sadly, the splendor of the interior rooms was lost in the 1943 bombings, but the splendor of the salons can still be glimpsed during the recurring temporary exhibitions. Its exhibitions, both classical and avant-garde (such as, in early 2024, those devoted to Goya and El Greco or, until June 2024, that on Giuseppe de Nittis, the 19th-century Italian painter), are of the highest quality and continue to attract ever-growing numbers of visitors.
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Opening time and information on PALAZZO REALE
Exhibitions according to calendar. Variable rates. Open Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 7:30 pm (Thursday until 10:30 pm).
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