Ducal Palace of Modena

The Ducal Palace of Modena is a Baroque palace in Modena, Italy. It was the residence of the Este Dukes of Modena between 1452 and 1859. It currently houses a portion of the Italian Military Academy.

The palace occupies the site of the former Este Castle, once at the periphery of the city. Although generally credited to Bartolomeo Avanzini, it has been suggested that advice and guidance in the design process had been sought from Pietro da Cortona, Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini.

The Palace has a Baroque façade, from which the Honour Court and the Honour Staircase can be accessed.

In 1696, Marcantonio Franceschini was commissioned to create a frescoed ceiling for the central Sala d'Onore ("Hall of Honour") for the marriage of Rinaldo d'Este to Princess Charlotte Felicity of Brunswick. The Salottino d'Oro ("Golden Sitting Room"), covered with gilded removable panels, was used by Duke Francis III as his main office.

The Palace currently houses the Italian Military Academy, the Military Museum and a library. Military ceremonies are held in the Honour Court.

Isabella d'Este (1635–1666) - born at the palace.

Rinaldo d'Este, Duke of Modena (1655–1737) - born and died at the palace.

Mary of Modena (1658–1718) aka Maria Beatrice Eleonora d'Este, Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland--born at the palace Duchess Charlotte of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1671–1710) - died at the palace in childbirth (the child also died).

Maria Teresa Felicitas d'Este (1726–1754) - born at the palace.

Ercole III d'Este, Duke of Modena (1727–1803) - born at the palace. Maria Fortunata d'Este (1731–1803)

Text adapted from “Ducal Palace of Modena” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Ducal Palace of Modena ranks #1,528 of 7,738 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #117 of the 452 mapped in Italy. Founded 1650, it is older than 26% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 580 atlas entries founded in the 17th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 3,810 times in the last 60 days, more than 80% of the atlas. 2 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Bologna, 37 km away. See how Italy compares in the castle statistics.

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Read the full history on Wikipedia ↗