French Baroque palace in Mdina, Malta
Vilhena Palace
(
Maltese
:
Il-Palazz De Vilhena
;
Italian
:
Palazzo Vilhena
), also known as the
Magisterial Palace
(
Maltese
:
Palazz Ma?isterjali
) and
Palazzo Pretorio
, is a
French Baroque
palace
in
Mdina
,
Malta
. It is named after
Antonio Manoel de Vilhena
, the
Grand Master
who commissioned it. It was built between 1726 and 1728 to designs of the French architect
Charles Francois de Mondion
, on the site of the meeting place of the Universita. The palace was used a hospital in the 19th and 20th centuries, and it became known as
Connaught Hospital
after 1909. Since 1973, it has been open to the public as Malta's
National Museum of Natural History
.
History
[
edit
]
Background and construction
[
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]
The site of Vilhena Palace has been inhabited since ancient times, and post-
Punic
remains have been found in the area.
[1]
In around the 8th century, a
Byzantine
fort was probably built on the site, and in the Middle Ages it developed into a
castle
known as the
Castellu di la Chitati
. The castle's inner walls were demolished in the 15th century, and the remaining part was built up as a palace by Grand Master
Philippe Villiers de L'Isle-Adam
in the 1530s.
[2]
The palace was called the
Palazzo Giuratale
, and it housed the civil administrative council known as the Universita. The structure was damaged in the
1693 Sicily earthquake
.
[3]
On 3 November 1722, the newly elected Grand Master,
Antonio Manoel de Vilhena
, issued orders for the restoration and renovation of Mdina.
[4]
The city entrance was completely rebuilt, and the seat of the Universita was demolished to make way for a summer palace for the Grand Master. A new
Banca Giuratale
was built to house the Universita following the demolition of its meeting place.
[5]
Construction of Vilhena's new palace began in 1726, and it was completed two years later in 1728. The building was designed by
Charles Francois de Mondion
in the
French Baroque
style that was popular in
Parisian
hotel palaces,
[6]
[7]
and it was constructed under the supervision of the Maltese
capomastro
Petruzzo Debono.
[8]
Hospital
[
edit
]
The palace served as a temporary hospital during a
cholera
outbreak in 1837.
[9]
On 12 June 1860, the palace was converted into a
sanatorium
by the British military. The palace was leased for
£
160 a year, and conversion of the building into a hospital cost less than £1000. The hospital was temporarily closed down in 1890, and it briefly served as a
barracks
. It reopened soon afterwards, and was finally closed down in 1907.
[10]
The palace was reopened by
King Edward VII
on 22 April 1909, as a hospital for patients suffering from
tuberculosis
. It was known as Connaught Hospital after
Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn
, who donated £800 to buy new equipment for the hospital.
[11]
[12]
The hospital was closed down in 1956.
[13]
Museum
[
edit
]
The palace was inaugurated as the
National Museum of Natural History
on 22 June 1973. Its collections include samples of flora and fauna, fossils, rocks, minerals and dioramas of Maltese habitats.
[9]
The palace's forecourt was restored in the early 2000s at a cost of around
Lm
46,000. It was inaugurated by the President of Malta,
Guido de Marco
, in July 2002.
[14]
The building was included on the Antiquities List of 1925.
[15]
It is now a Grade 1 national monument, and it is listed on the
National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands
.
[8]
Architecture
[
edit
]
Vilhena Palace is a large building which is considered to be "an excellent example of
French Baroque
." It has a U-shaped
forecourt
surrounded with loggias, which follows the plan of the original castle, and it possibly contains some remnants of the 16th century palace incorporated into the structure.
[2]
[7]
The forecourt is approached through a gate decorated with Vilhena's coat of arms. The central facade of the palace contains the ornate main doorway, which is flanked by
Corinthian columns
and is surmounted by a bronze relief of De Vilhena and another coat of arms.
[8]
The palace's interior is irregularly planned, contrasting sharply with the regularity and balance of the exterior. The building also contains an inner
courtyard
.
[8]
Vilhena Palace is linked to the
Corte Capitanale
, which was built at the same time as the palace and was also designed by Mondion. This building served as Mdina's law courts, and its linking to the palace was a symbolic gesture to convey that the courts were under the jurisdiction of the
Order of St. John
. The Corte Capitanale now serves as the seat of Mdina's
local council
.
[16]
Further reading
[
edit
]
See also
[
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]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Sagona, Claudia (2015).
The Archaeology of Malta
. Cambridge University Press. p. 314.
ISBN
9781107006690
.
- ^
a
b
Spiteri, Stephen C. (2004?2007).
"The 'Castellu di la Chitati' the medieval castle of the walled town of Mdina"
(PDF)
.
Arx ? Online Journal of Military Architecture and Fortification
(1?4): 3?11
. Retrieved
29 November
2015
.
- ^
Wright, Angela; Overmyer, Corbin; Darmanin, David; Clarke, Tim (2008).
Executive Malta
. EPH Ltd. p. 116.
ISBN
9789948038139
.
- ^
De Lucca, Denis (1979). "Mdina: Baroque town planning in 18th century Mdina".
Heritage: An Encyclopedia of Maltese Culture and Civilization
.
1
. Midsea Books Ltd: 21?25.
- ^
"Mdina"
.
malta.com
. Archived from
the original
on 27 October 2015.
- ^
Thake, Conrad (1994).
"Architectural Scenography in 18th-century Mdina"
(PDF)
.
Proceedings of History Week
. Historical Society of Malta: 74.
Archived
(PDF)
from the original on 10 April 2016
. Retrieved
4 March
2016
.
- ^
a
b
Zammit, Ninu
(22 November 2007).
"Vauban and French Architecural Influence in Malta"
.
Department of Information
(1795). Valletta, Malta. Archived from
the original
on 29 March 2017.
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Palazzo Vilhena"
(PDF)
.
National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands
. 28 December 2012. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on 29 November 2015.
- ^
a
b
"National Museum of Natural History"
.
Heritage Malta
. Archived from
the original
on 5 January 2015.
- ^
"Regimental Hospitals and Military Hospitals of the Malta Garrison"
.
maltarmc.com
. British Army Medical Services And the Malta Garrison 1799 ? 1979. Archived from
the original
on 17 November 2015.
- ^
Bonnici, Joseph; Cassar, Michael (2004).
A Chronicle of Twentieth Century Malta
. Book Distributors Limited. p. 38.
ISBN
9789990972276
.
- ^
"Behind The scenes at the Natural History Museum"
.
The Malta Independent
. 18 April 2008. Archived from
the original
on 29 November 2015.
- ^
Botev, Radosław.
"The Vilhena Palace, Malta"
.
odyssei.com
. Archived from
the original
on 29 April 2015.
- ^
"Restoration Project: Vilhena Palace ? Mdina"
(PDF)
.
Baroque Routes
(4). Institute of Baroque Studies: 4?5. December 2002. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on 14 December 2015.
- ^
"Protection of Antiquities Regulations 21st November, 1932 Government Notice 402 of 1932, as Amended by Government Notices 127 of 1935 and 338 of 1939"
.
Malta Environment and Planning Authority
.
Archived
from the original on 19 April 2016
. Retrieved
10 February
2016
.
- ^
"Corte Capitanale"
(PDF)
.
National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands
. 28 December 2012. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on 29 November 2015.
External links
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