★★★★★ 5.0
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Quirinal Palace
The year is 1583, and Pope Gregory XIII is fleeing... not from enemies, but from the awful stench rising off the Tiber River. So he builds THIS summer escape on Rome's highest hill, and what starts as a breezy getaway becomes home to 30 popes, 4 kings, and 12 presidents. Standing in Piazza del Quirinale, you're looking at the eleventh-largest palace in the entire world – 110,500 square meters, which is 20 times bigger than the White House. Here's something wild: Napoleon chose this as his dream residence, but he never spent a single night here because France got defeated in 1814. And those statues of the Dioscuri twins wrestling horses? They're actually from Constantine's baths that stood right here in ancient Rome. Inside, tucked above the grand staircase, there's a fresco by Melozzo da Forlì that's been watching over this place since 1480. Pretty good job security, if you ask me.
Did You Know?
- The Quirinal Palace was originally built in 1583 as a summer escape for Pope Gregory XIII, who wanted to avoid the unhealthy conditions near the Tiber River, but it soon became a symbol of papal power and later served as the royal palace for the Kings of Italy after unification in 1871—today, it is the official residence of the President of the Italian Republic, making it one of the few buildings in the world to have housed both religious and secular heads of state over its long history.
- Hidden in the palace’s grand halls is the famous 'Blessing Christ' fresco by Melozzo da Forlì, placed above the main staircase, but the palace also boasts a stunning collection of Baroque and neoclassical art, including works by Guido Reni, and architectural masterpieces by Carlo Maderno and Gian Lorenzo Bernini—families and art lovers can discover these treasures on guided tours, imagining the popes, kings, and presidents who once walked these same corridors.
- Legend has it that the Quirinal Hill, where the palace stands, was once home to the ancient Sabines, and its name comes from the altar they built to their god Quirinus (similar to the Roman god Mars)—children and history buffs will love the story of how, after a dramatic conflict, Sabine women stopped a war between their people and the Romans, leading to peace and the hill becoming a place of reconciliation and power for centuries to come.