It is located near the historic center of Sintra, on Rua Barbosa du Bocage, City of Sintra, Central Portugal
The initial building built by Gerard DeVisme was an elongated construction topped at the ends by two cylindrical towers and covered by cone-shaped roofs (this being the essential structure that has remained to this day).
The initial Palace was a neo-Gothic castle that underwent alterations by Beckford, having been the scene of numerous parties, the center of an elite of intellectuals that Beckford gathered around him.
One of the most celebrated is George Byron, an Anglo-Scottish poet and figure of the Romantic movement who in 1809 referred to Monserrate in his work "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage".
In 1858, the new owner Francis Cook hired the services of the English architect James Knowles to design a new palace using the foundations and some walls of the building that preceded it (some already over a hundred years old).
The construction, which lasted from 1863 to 1865, reveals an orientalist and eclectic taste with distinctly Gothic, Indian and Arabic elements.
Overall, it presents a rigorous symmetry marked in the center by a set of elegant columns that support the neo-medieval arcade, having hired the English contractor J. Samuel Bennet who would later work with D. Fernando in the restoration of the Jerónimos Convent.
Inside we find an octagonal Atrium formed by Gothic arches and pink marble columns (with a set of stairs that go up to Francis Cook's private quarters), the Dining Room, the Library with walnut shelves and a beautiful high-relief door, the Chapel, the Main Atrium which is also octagonal and which features a classicist-inspired Carrara marble fountain, as well as perforated Delhi alabaster panels that function as screens. carved.
The Atrium is topped by a dome decorated with wood and stucco and is located in the center of the Gallery that crosses the entire palace, from the North Tower to the South Tower, the Billiards Room, the Indian Living Room and finally the Music Room, which is a room of large proportions, excellent acoustics and rich decoration, a stucco dome and a frieze with representations of the Muses and the Graces.
Monserrate Park covers 33 hectares and has several gardens where an impressive botanical collection can be found, with specimens from all over the world.
Construction lasted from 1863 to 1929 with a project generally attributed to William Colebrook Stockdale, a romantic-style landscape painter (although he only worked directly on site in 1863, 1874 and 1875).
In 1885, the gardens of the Monserrate Palace were mentioned in a two-part article in The Gardener's Chronicle (London).
The Jardim do México is located in the hottest and driest area of the property, bringing together plants from warmer climates such as the Mexican Taxodium, the Giant Strelícia (South Africa), Bunia-búnia (Australia) and Coquitos-do-Chile.
The Japanese Garden is home to Asian plants such as Bamboo, Camellia (Southeast Asia), Yew (Europe, Northwest Africa, Southeast Asia), Fijian Fig Tree and Ginkgo (Southwest China).
The Valley of Ferns presents several specimens of tree ferns arranged along the slope: twelve tree ferns (1867/1868), each about 2.5 meters tall, were cut in the Dandenong Mountains in Australia and transported (without roots or fronds) in pine boxes filled with damp sawdust.
The specimens were first planted inside the chapel ruin, treated to allow acclimatization and then transplanted to the valley, and 8 of the first twelve ferns survived.
Ornamental Lakes have different depths and different temperatures made up of exotic aquatic plants such as papyrus and water lilies.
In this space there is a Rose Garden with around 200 historical varieties and whose restoration was completed in 2011 when it was inaugurated by His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall.
The park is decorated with various elements in the romantic style, some of which were designed by William Beckford: the artificial waterfall (it was necessary to divert a stream to reach it), the Vathek Arch which shares its name with the main character of Beckford's famous novel, Vathek) and the false Cromlech, also the work of Beckford.
The built structures stand out: the false ruin of a Chapel designed by Francis Cook, an Indian ornamental arch (purchased in 1857 by Cook from Charles Canning, Governor-General of India) decorates the Perfumed Path that ends at the main entrance of the palace.
In Casa de Pedra (a rustic building whose exterior is covered in irregular stones) there was a carpentry shop and a dairy, and today it is the headquarters of Parques de Sintra - Monte da Lua, S.A.
In the space there is a painting studio used by Sir Francis Cook (1907-1978), great-grandson of the 1st Viscount of Monserrate. (a noble title created by D. Luís I of Portugal by decree of June 7, 1870, in favor of Sir Francis Cook).
The initial Palace was a neo-Gothic castle that underwent alterations by Beckford, having been the scene of numerous parties, the center of an elite of intellectuals that Beckford gathered around him.
One of the most celebrated is George Byron, an Anglo-Scottish poet and figure of the Romantic movement who in 1809 referred to Monserrate in his work "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage".
In 1858, the new owner Francis Cook hired the services of the English architect James Knowles to design a new palace using the foundations and some walls of the building that preceded it (some already over a hundred years old).
The construction, which lasted from 1863 to 1865, reveals an orientalist and eclectic taste with distinctly Gothic, Indian and Arabic elements.
Overall, it presents a rigorous symmetry marked in the center by a set of elegant columns that support the neo-medieval arcade, having hired the English contractor J. Samuel Bennet who would later work with D. Fernando in the restoration of the Jerónimos Convent.
Inside we find an octagonal Atrium formed by Gothic arches and pink marble columns (with a set of stairs that go up to Francis Cook's private quarters), the Dining Room, the Library with walnut shelves and a beautiful high-relief door, the Chapel, the Main Atrium which is also octagonal and which features a classicist-inspired Carrara marble fountain, as well as perforated Delhi alabaster panels that function as screens. carved.
The Atrium is topped by a dome decorated with wood and stucco and is located in the center of the Gallery that crosses the entire palace, from the North Tower to the South Tower, the Billiards Room, the Indian Living Room and finally the Music Room, which is a room of large proportions, excellent acoustics and rich decoration, a stucco dome and a frieze with representations of the Muses and the Graces.
Monserrate Park covers 33 hectares and has several gardens where an impressive botanical collection can be found, with specimens from all over the world.
Construction lasted from 1863 to 1929 with a project generally attributed to William Colebrook Stockdale, a romantic-style landscape painter (although he only worked directly on site in 1863, 1874 and 1875).
In 1885, the gardens of the Monserrate Palace were mentioned in a two-part article in The Gardener's Chronicle (London).
The Jardim do México is located in the hottest and driest area of the property, bringing together plants from warmer climates such as the Mexican Taxodium, the Giant Strelícia (South Africa), Bunia-búnia (Australia) and Coquitos-do-Chile.
The Japanese Garden is home to Asian plants such as Bamboo, Camellia (Southeast Asia), Yew (Europe, Northwest Africa, Southeast Asia), Fijian Fig Tree and Ginkgo (Southwest China).
The Valley of Ferns presents several specimens of tree ferns arranged along the slope: twelve tree ferns (1867/1868), each about 2.5 meters tall, were cut in the Dandenong Mountains in Australia and transported (without roots or fronds) in pine boxes filled with damp sawdust.
The specimens were first planted inside the chapel ruin, treated to allow acclimatization and then transplanted to the valley, and 8 of the first twelve ferns survived.
Ornamental Lakes have different depths and different temperatures made up of exotic aquatic plants such as papyrus and water lilies.
In this space there is a Rose Garden with around 200 historical varieties and whose restoration was completed in 2011 when it was inaugurated by His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall.
The park is decorated with various elements in the romantic style, some of which were designed by William Beckford: the artificial waterfall (it was necessary to divert a stream to reach it), the Vathek Arch which shares its name with the main character of Beckford's famous novel, Vathek) and the false Cromlech, also the work of Beckford.
The built structures stand out: the false ruin of a Chapel designed by Francis Cook, an Indian ornamental arch (purchased in 1857 by Cook from Charles Canning, Governor-General of India) decorates the Perfumed Path that ends at the main entrance of the palace.
In Casa de Pedra (a rustic building whose exterior is covered in irregular stones) there was a carpentry shop and a dairy, and today it is the headquarters of Parques de Sintra - Monte da Lua, S.A.
In the space there is a painting studio used by Sir Francis Cook (1907-1978), great-grandson of the 1st Viscount of Monserrate. (a noble title created by D. Luís I of Portugal by decree of June 7, 1870, in favor of Sir Francis Cook).
