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| 1480 Sinaia - Peleş Castle seen from helicopter |
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Posted on 08.03.2015, 12.08.2015
In 1866, just months after he ascended the throne of Romanian Principalities (formed by only 7 years, by the unification of Wallachia and Moldavia, then still under the suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire), Carol I visited Sinaia, at that time a small village called Podul Neagului (Neagu's Bridge), and fell in love with the magnificent mountain scenery. Prince decides building a castle in a secluded and picturesque place: Piatra Arsă (The Burnt Stone). In 1872, the Crown purchased 10km2 of land and commissioned the construction of a royal hunting preserve and summer residence. The first three design plans were copies of other palaces in Western Europe, and Carol I rejected them. The german architect Johannes Schultz won the project with a plan representing a grand palatial alpine villa, combining different features of classic European styles, mostly following Italian elegance and German aesthetics.
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| 1481 Sinaia - Peleş Castle - detail |
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In 1875 was laid the foundation stone of the Peleş Castle, in which are buried dozens of gold coins of 20 lei, the first Romanian coins with the image of Carol I. Works were also lead by architect Carol Benesch. Queen Elisabeth of Romania, during the construction phase, wrote in her journal: "Italians were masons, Romanians were building terraces, the Gypsies were coolies. Albanians and Greeks worked in stone, Germans and Hungarians were carpenters. Turks were burning brick. Engineers were Polish and the stone carvers were Czech. The Frenchmen were drawing, the Englishmen were measuring, and so was then when you could see hundreds of national costumes and fourteen languages in which they spoke, sang, cursed and quarreled in all dialects and tones, a joyful mix of men, horses, cart oxen and domestic buffaloes."
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| 1810 Sinaia - Peleş Castle in winter |
Construction saw a slight slowdown during the Romanian War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire in 1877-1878, but in 1883 held the official opening of the castle. Meanwhile, in 1881 the Romanian Principalities became the Kingdom of Romania, and Carol I was crowned as King. Later additions to Peleş Castel were made between 1893 and 1914 (the year of the death of King Carol I) by the Czech architect Karel Liman, who designed the towers, including the main central tower, which is 66m in height. By form and function, Peleş is a palace, but it is consistently called a castle. Its architectural style is a romantically inspired blend Neo-Renaissance and Gothic Revival similar to Schloss Neuschwanstein in Bavaria. A Saxon influence can be observed in the interior courtyard facades. Interior decoration is mostly Baroque influenced, with heavy carved woods and exquisite fabrics.
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| 1482 Sinaia - Peleş Castle - Sala Mare De Arme (The Grand Armory) |
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The location of the castle wasn't random. Not far away, in Predeal, was at that time the border between Romania and Austria Hungary. Later, after the unification of Transylvania with the Kingdom, the castle came to be located right in the heart of the country. It has hosted many personalities of the time, writers, musicians, and kings and queens, and also important political meetings, such as some Crown Councils. Here was born, in 1893, the future King Carol II, the first king of the dynasty born on Romanian soil and baptized in the Orthodox religion. In 1921, in the Foişor Huntin was born his son, King Mihai I. The castle remained a royal residence until 1948, when it was confiscated by the communist regime. In 2007, the Romanian government returned the castle to Mihai I, which has decided to retain the museum quality of the castle, leaving it in the tourist circuit.
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