Pena Palace

The magnificent Pena Palace is one of the oldest European palaces built in the Romantic era. After the Republican Revolution in the early twentieth century, it was classified as a national treasure, and a museum was organized here. Nowadays, the Pena Palace is included in the list of the Seven Wonders of Portugal, as well as in the list of UNESCO World Cultural Heritage.

One of the legends hovering around the palace says that the place for the construction of the future palace was indicated by the Virgin Mary herself, who appeared in a vision. During the reign of King Manuel I, who had a special love for this secluded place, the construction of the monastery began. For several centuries, the Monastery of Pena was a secluded and quiet place, where only 15 monks lived.

In the XVIII century, the monastery buildings suffered from lightning. In 1755, it was almost completely destroyed by an earthquake. Of the complex of buildings, only the very first chapel remained, all other structures lay in ruins. So, dilapidated, he stood for several decades.

The second life of this place began in 1838, when the prince consort, the husband of Queen Mary II, was going to buy the monastery, as well as the neighboring castle with the surrounding territories. On the site of the monastery ruins, Prince Ferdinand of Saxony of Coburg, with the romanticism and fantasy characteristic of all Germans, decided to build a summer residence for members of the royal family. And the result was not just a palace, but a real fairy tale.