Italy · 14th century
The Palazzo Ducale (Ducal Palace) in Mantua, also known as the Gonzaga Palace, is one of the city's main historic buildings. From 1308, it served as the official residence of the Lords of Mantua, initially the Bonacolsi, and later the main residence of the Gonzaga, who were lords, marquesses, and eventually dukes of the Virgilian city. It housed the reigning Gonzaga, his wife, their legitimate firstborn son, other legitimate children until adulthood, and notable guests. It was designated the Royal Palace during the Austrian domination starting from the reign of Maria Theresa.
Each duke sought to add a wing for themselves and their art collections, resulting in an area exceeding 35,000 m², making it one of Europe's largest palaces after the palaces of the Vatican, the Louvre Palace, the Palace of Versailles, the Royal Palace of Caserta, the Royal Palace of Venaria, Buckingham Palace, the Palace of Fontainebleau, the Winter Palace, or the Royal Palace of Stockholm. It comprises over 500 rooms and encompasses 7 gardens and 8 courtyards.
Text adapted from “Ducal Palace, Mantua” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Palazzo Ducale Mantua ranks #543 of 9,079 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #38 of the 560 mapped in Italy. Founded c. 1350, it is older than 55% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 755 atlas entries founded in the 14th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 8,074 times in the last 60 days, more than 92% of the atlas. Wikidata records about 240,000 visitors in 2022. 2 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Brescia, 62 km away. See how Italy compares in the castle statistics.
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