The Doge's Palace (Italian: ''Palazzo Ducale'') is a historical building in

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

, northwest Italy. Once the home of the Doges of Genoa, it is now a museum and a centre for cultural events and arts exhibitions. It is situated in the heart of the city, with two different entrances and façades, the main one on Piazza

Giacomo Matteotti Giacomo Matteotti (; 22 May 1885 – 10 June 1924) was an Italian socialist politician and secretary of the Unitary Socialist Party (PSU). He was elected deputy of the Chamber of Deputies three times, in 1919, 1921 and in 1924. On 30 May 19 ...

, and the second one on

Piazza De Ferrari Piazza De Ferrari is the main Piazza, square of Genoa. Situated in the heart of the city between the historical and the modern center, Piazza De Ferrari is renowned for its fountain, which was restored in recent years along with a major restyling ...

History

The construction of the Doge's Palace began at the end of the 13th century, when Genoa was gradually consolidating its military and economic power in the Mediterranean. At that time the city was organized according as the "Compagna Communis" (the official name of the Republic in the time), which provided for the appointment of the

Capitano del popolo Captain of the people () was an administrative title used in Italy during the Middle Ages, established essentially to balance the power and authority of the noble families of the Italian city-states.Najemy, John M. 2006. ''A History of Florence 1 ...

, as the head of state of Genoa. Until 1291, however, the highest officials and other representatives of the Municipality did not have their own headquarters but were housed in the Archbishop's Palace, or in nearby private homes belonging to the Doria and Fieschi families. In 1291 the "Capitani del popolo" Corrado Doria and Oberto Spinola bought the buildings owned by the Doria family, and three years later the adjacent palace of Alberto Fieschi was also purchased, equipped with a tower later called "Grimaldina", already used as a seat by the Capitani del popolo since 1272 due to the exile of Fieschi. The merger led to the construction of the abbots' palace. The palace, which with the appointment in 1339 of the first Genoese doge

Simone Boccanegra Simone Boccanegra (; ; died 1363) was the first Doge of Genoa. He became doge in 1339, but was ousted from power six years later. He regained the position in 1356, retaining it until his death in 1363. His story was popularized by Antonio Gar ...

had taken the name of "ducale", underwent a series of transformations starting from the second half of the 14th century at the behest of the Doge Antoniotto Adorno. The building was enlarged with the addition of new buildings to the east, to form a sort of "C" around today's Piazza Umberto I, and to the north, to occupy a space corresponding to the current central body of the palace. The interventions wanted by Adorno did not change the main access to the building, which continued to be maintained on the Tommaso Reggio street. A new important transformation took place towards the middle of the following century with the construction of the so-called " enceinte", a building intended to house the garrison that connected the east and west wings of Piazza Umberto I, effectively transforming the square into a courtyard fortified and making the palace a sort of citadel of power isolated from the rest of the city. The exact date of construction of the curtain is not known, but the appointment of a "captain of the palace gate" in 1470 suggests that its construction was finished at that time. With the construction of the new wing, the access from via Tommaso Reggio was closed and the new entrance was placed in the center of the new building. In the 16th century the reforms wanted by

Andrea Doria Andrea Doria, Prince of Melfi (; ; 30 November 146625 November 1560) was an Italian statesman, ', and admiral, who played a key role in the Republic of Genoa during his lifetime. From 1528 until his death, Doria exercised a predominant influe ...

had changed the political structure of the city, which was then governed by a Great Council of four hundred senators and a

Minor Council The Minor Council () or Ducal Council was one of the main constitutional bodies of the Republic of Venice, and served both as advisors and partners to the Doge of Venice, sharing and limiting his authority. Establishment The Minor Council was esta ...

, while the doge was no longer elected for life but remained in office for only two years. The desire to have a seat that reflected the prestige and hierarchical organization of the Dogate, together with the need for a fortress that would keep the government safe from intrigues and coups d'état, led the senate to entrust in 1591 the architect Andrea Ceresola, known as "il Vannone", the task of completely renovating the building. New important transformation works took place in 1778, after a violent fire destroyed a large part of the central body of the building on 3 November 1777, of which only the atrium on the ground floor and the staircase leading to it were saved. A competition was quickly launched for the reconstruction, in which Giacomo Maria Gaggini, Gregorio Petondi and Emanuele Andrea Tagliafichi, among the most famous architects active in Genoa in those years, were invited to participate. The competition was however won by the architect

Simone Cantoni Simone Cantoni (2 September 1739 – 3 March 1818) was a Swiss architect of the Neoclassical period, active mainly in Northern Italy. Among his many works are the Villa Olmo in Como, Villa Cigalini in Bornate, Villa Giovia in Brescia, Villa Ga ...

, who conceived a marble facade that represents one of the first examples of neoclassical style in Genoa. The reconstruction works took place between 1778 and 1783 under the supervision of Gaetano Cantoni and, in addition to the façade, involved the neoclassical reconstruction of the halls of the Great Council and Minor Council, whose wooden roofs had been damaged by the fire. The new roofs were made of bricks, to protect them from any new fires. In 1815, the annexation of Genoa and Liguria to the

Kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia, also referred to as the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica among other names, was a State (polity), country in Southern Europe from the late 13th until the mid-19th century, and from 1297 to 1768 for the Corsican part of ...

, marked the end of the Republic of Genoa and the palace lost its function as the seat of the government and its premises were used as courtrooms, offices and archives as a new seat of the judiciary, a role it continued to hold until 1975. A new restoration campaign took place in the first decades of the 20th century by Orlando Grosso. His most important interventions concerned the elevations on via Tommaso Reggio, where the loggia of the abbots and other remains of medieval buildings that had been covered by a linear Mannerist facade by Vannone were brought to light, following the neo-medievalist policy in force at the time, and the facade on the

, which was completely renovated and repainted. In 1942 the building was partially damaged, in particular between the central body and the west wing, during one of the bombings of the city carried out by the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Contemporary era

On the main floor, the so-called

Piano nobile ( Italian for "noble floor" or "noble level", also sometimes referred to by the corresponding French term, ) is the architectural term for the principal floor of a '' palazzo''. This floor contains the main reception and bedrooms of the house ...

, are the frescoed halls of the ''Maggior and Minor Consiglio'', where many public events take place. The Palace of the Doges was restored in 1992, in occasion of the celebrations of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

and the 500th anniversary of the

discovery of the Americas The human history of the Americas is thought to begin with people migrating to these areas from Asia during the height of an ice age. These groups are generally believed to have been isolated from the people of the "Old World" until the coming o ...

. Following the restoration, the palace was opened to the public and used as a museum and palace of culture. Since 8 February 2008, the palace is managed by the "Genoa Palazzo Ducale Foundation for Culture". In addition to some commercial activities, it periodically hosts events, conferences and important art exhibitions. In July 2001 the Palace hosted the

G8 Summit The Group of Eight (G8) was an intergovernmental political forum from 1997 to 2014, formed by incorporating Russia into the G7. The G8 became the G7 again after Russia was expelled in 2014 after the Russian annexation of Crimea. The forum ...

References

Gallery

File:Lato Piazza Matteotti.JPG, The neoclassical facade on Piazza Umberto I File:Cappella della Dogana Altare 2.JPG, Altar of the chapel of the Palace File:Cappella della Dogana 3.JPG, The palace's chapel File:Genova-palazzo ducale-torre grimaldina3.jpg, The top of the Grimaldina tower File:Ala est.jpg, The east wing of the palace File:Luci sala del Maggior Consiglio.JPG, The vault of the hall of the Great Council File:S03 06 01 028 image 3403.jpg, Palazzo Ducale, Genoa, Italy. Brooklyn Museum Archives, Goodyear Archival Collection File:Palazzo Ducale Genova Scalone interno.jpg, The staircase with the coat of arms of the Republic of Genoa. File:Genova-palazzo ducale-porticato2.jpg, The main courtyard

External links

Official Website of the Palace of the Doges of Genoa
{{Authority control Buildings and structures completed in 1279 Houses completed in 1539 Ducale Ducale Neoclassical architecture in Liguria Museums in Genoa Historic house museums in Italy 1539 establishments in the Republic of Genoa

History

Contemporary era

See also

References

Gallery

External links