The Villa d'Este, originally Villa del Garovo, is a
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
patrician residence in
Cernobbio
Cernobbio ( Comasco: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Como, Lombardy, northern Italy. It is located about north of Milan and about northwest of Como, on the border with Switzerland and near the Lake Como. The highest peak is ...
on the shores of
Lake Como
Lake Como ( it, Lago di Como , ; lmo, label=Western Lombard, Lagh de Còmm , ''Cómm'' or ''Cùmm'' ), also known as Lario (; after the la, Larius Lacus), is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the thir ...
in northern
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. Both the villa and the park which surrounds it have undergone significant changes since their sixteenth-century origins as a summer residence for the
Cardinal
Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to:
Animals
* Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds
**''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae
**''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...
of
Como
Como (, ; lmo, Còmm, label=Comasco dialect, Comasco , or ; lat, Novum Comum; rm, Com; french: Côme) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como.
Its proximity to Lake Como and ...
. Nevertheless, visiting the garden in 1903 for ''
Century Magazine
''The Century Magazine'' was an illustrated monthly magazine first published in the United States in 1881 by The Century Company of New York City, which had been bought in that year by Roswell Smith and renamed by him after the Century Associati ...
'',
Edith Wharton
Edith Wharton (; born Edith Newbold Jones; January 24, 1862 – August 11, 1937) was an American novelist, short story writer, and interior designer. Wharton drew upon her insider's knowledge of the upper-class New York "aristocracy" to portray ...
found this to be ‘the only old garden on Como which keeps more than a fragment of its original architecture’, and noted that ‘though
Queen Caroline anglicised part of the grounds, the main lines of the Renaissance garden still exist’. Since 1873, the complex has been a
luxury hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...
.
History
Gerardo Landriani
Gerardo may refer to:
People Given name
Gerardo is the Spanish, Portuguese and Italian form of the male given name Gerard.
* Gerardo Amarilla (born 1969), Uruguayan politician
* Gerardo Bonilla (born 1975), Puerto Rican-born professional race ...
, Bishop of Como (1437–1445), founded a female convent here at the mouth of the Garovo torrent in 1442. A century later, Cardinal
Tolomeo Gallio
Tolomeo Gallio (also spelled Gallo and Galli; 25 September 1527 – 3 or 4 February 1607) was an Italian Cardinal (Catholicism), Cardinal.
Biography
In the time of Pope Gregory XIII, he acted as papal secretary of state (in office 1572 to 15 ...
demolished the nunnery and commissioned
Pellegrino Tibaldi
Pellegrino Tibaldi (Valsolda, 1527–Milan, 1596), also known as Pellegrino di Tibaldo de Pellegrini, was an Italian mannerism, mannerist architect, sculpture, sculptor, and mural Painting, painter.
Biography
Tibaldi was born in Puria di Valsol ...
to design a residence for his own use. The Villa del Garovo, together with its luxuriant gardens, was constructed during the years 1565–70 and during the cardinal’s lifetime it became a resort of politicians, intellectuals and ecclesiastics. On Gallio’s death, the villa passed to his family who, over the years, allowed it to sink into a state of some decay.
From 1749 to 1769, it was a
Jesuit
, image = Ihs-logo.svg
, image_size = 175px
, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders ...
centre for
spiritual exercises
The ''Spiritual Exercises'' ( la, Exercitia spiritualia), composed 1522–1524, are a set of Christian meditations, contemplations, and prayers written by Ignatius of Loyola, a 16th-century Spanish priest, theologian, and founder of the Society ...
, after which it was acquired first by Count Mario Odescalchi and then in 1778 by a Count Marliani. In 1784, it passed to the
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
ese Calderari family, who undertook a major restoration project and created a new park
''all’Italiana'', with an impressive
nymphaeum
A ''nymphaeum'' or ''nymphaion'' ( grc, νυμφαῖον), in ancient Greece and Rome, was a monument consecrated to the nymphs, especially those of springs.
These monuments were originally natural grottoes, which tradition assigned as habit ...
and a temple displaying a seventeenth-century statue of Hercules hurling
Lichas
:''Lichas can also refer to Lichas the Spartan, who discovered the bones of Orestes, or a genus of trilobite''
In Greek mythology, Lichas (; el, Λίχας) was Hercules's servant, who brought the poisoned shirt from Deianira to Hercules beca ...
into the sea. After the death of Marquis Calderari, his wife Vittoria Peluso, a former ballerina at
La Scala
La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...
and known as ''la Pelusina'', married a Napoleonic general, Count
Domenico Pino
Domenico ("Dominique") Pino (Milan, 8 September 1760 – Cernobbio, 29 March 1826) was an Italian soldier. He served as General of Division in the Kingdom of Italy and in Napoleon's Grande Armée.
Biography
Pino was born in Milan, to Francesco ...
, and a mock fortress was erected in the park in his honour.
[Leoni Marco and others]
‘Villa d'Este – complesso’
''Lombardia Beni Culturali'', Regione Lombardia and Università degli Studi di Pavia, 2006.
In 1815,
it became the residence of Caroline of Brunswick, estranged wife of future King
George IV
George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...
. "Its garden seems almost suspended in the air", she wrote in her diary, "and forms a scene of complete enchantment." She gave it the name ''Nuova Villa d'Este'' and had the park landscaped in the English style.
It was converted into a deluxe hotel for the nobility and the high bourgeoisie in 1873, and kept the name ''Villa d'Este'' to take advantage of the apparent link with the famous
Villa d'Este in Tivoli, near Rome. A gala dinner held at the Villa d’Este in 1948 was the scene for the celebrated murder of the wealthy silk manufacturer Carlo Sacchi, shot dead by his lover Countess
Pia Bellentani with her husband’s
Fegyverzyar automatic pistol.
Present
Today, with room rates averaging €1000 ($1200) a night and top suites averaging €3500 ($4200) per night, the villa is a luxury hotel for wealthy people and a high-level congress center.
In June 2009, ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'' reckoned it the best hotel in the world, while in 2014 it was listed as the 2nd best resort in Europe by ''
Travel + Leisure
Travel + Leisure Co. (formerly Wyndham Destinations, Inc. and Wyndham Worldwide Corporation) is an American timeshare company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. It develops, sells, and manages timeshare properties under several vacation ownershi ...
'' magazine.
Every May, the hotel holds a
Concours d'Elegance
''Concours d'Elegance'' ( French: ''concours d'élégance'') is a term of French origin that means a "competition of elegance" and refers to an event where prestigious vehicles are displayed and judged. It dates back to 17th-century France, whe ...
for vintage and concept cars, the
Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este
Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este () is a Concours d'Elegance event in Italy for classic car, classic and vintage cars. It takes place annually near the Villa d'Este (Cernobbio), Villa d'Este hotel in Cernobbio, on the western shore of Lake Como ...
, which was first presented in 1928. In September, it hosts the annual
Ambrosetti Forum
The Ambrosetti Forum organized by The European House – Ambrosetti, a consulting firm – is an annual international economic conference held at Villa d'Este, in the Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people ...
, an international workshop attended by prominent figures from the fields of politics, finance and business, which has taken place there since 1975.
‘Ambrosetti Forum 2007: September 7-9’
Financial Times.
Notes
Further reading
*
External links
*
* Edgcumbe Staley
''Lords and Ladies of the Italian Lakes''
(London: John Long, 1912), pp. 116–129.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Villa D'Este, Cernobbio
Hotels in Italy
Houses completed in 1570
1570 establishments in Italy
Renaissance architecture in Lombardy
Este
Cernobbio
Caroline of Brunswick