In 1337 Azzo da Correggio built the Fortress of Colorno and the Castle of Guardasone to have two fortifications to the east and west of Parma, to defend the Oltrepò region.
The Fortress of Colorno was renovated in the sixteenth century by the beautiful - as they say - and refined countess Barbara di Sanverino - sung by Torquato Tasso in the sonnet In praise of 'hair of Donna Barbara Sanseverini Countess of Sala. The woman transformed it into her court's palace seat and brought a rich collection of paintings, from Titian to Correggio, from Mantegna to Raphael.
After confiscating the countess's assets by Ranuccio Farnese, in 1612, the palace faced a new renovation and assumed its present appearance.
Following the Treaty of Aachen (1748) that concluded the War of Austrian Succession, the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza passed from Maria Theresa of Hapsburg to the children of Elizabeth Farnese and the King of Spain Philip V of Bourbon. Charles had lived there reluctantly and for a short time from 1731 to 1735. After the conquest of the Kingdom of Naples in 1734, he moved to that city. He brought with him the Farnese's art collections and furnishings in the Capodimonte palace.
After taking over from his brother, Philip settled in the palace with his wife Louise Elizabeth, daughter of the King of France Louis XV. The citizens of Colorno were soon happy to call her with the name the relatives of the Duchess addressed her affectionately.
Babette brought a touch of France to Parma's cuisine as well as to the palace. At the suggestion of the enlightened Guillaume du Tillot, minister of public economy and foreign affairs, she entrusted the renovation of the ducal residence to the architect Ennemond Alexandre Petitot who worked to make the interior of the mansion resemble the Palace of Versailles.
His successor, Ferdinand, preferred to live in a building adjacent to the palace, in an apartment equipped with a library with more than 6000 volumes and an astronomical observatory. A pious man, reactionary, bigoted, introverted, and passionate about astronomy, he rebuilt the court oratory of San Liborio, inverting its layout to make it more accessible to the population. He also built the Dominican convent. Convent and oratory were connected to his private apartment by hidden passages.
After Napoleon annexed the Duchy of Parma to France, the residence was decreed "Imperial Palace." However, following the Congress of Vienna, in 1815, it passed to Napoleon's wife Maria Luigia of Austria. She transformed the garden in the English style.
With the unification of Italy, the Savoy family ceded the palace to the State, but not before having transferred everything of value to their various residences around the peninsula: the Quirinale in Rome, Palazzo Pitti in Florence, the Royal Palace of Turin, and the hunting lodge of Stupinigi.
After the purchase in 1870 by the province of Parma, the building assumed the function of a psychiatric hospital. It remained so until 1978 when the Basaglia Law decreed the closure of mental hospitals.
Perfectly preserved is the court church of San Liborio and the Serassi organ, which counts 2898 pipes and is usually played for concerts.
Today the complex is open to the public for guided tours, art exhibitions, and evenings of music and entertainment. In an area of the palace is ALMA, the International School of Italian Cuisine - the most authoritative Italian center of culinary training at the international level - founded by Maestro Gualtiero Marchesi.
The park, developed in 1749 by the gardener of Versailles François Anquetil called Delisle on Petitot's design, was restored by the Province of Parma between 1998 and 2000 on the original Delisle's projects.
27 сен 2021
