On January 21, the Royal Apartments at Palazzo Pitti will reopen after a five-year closure.
The 14 palatial rooms on the first floor of the palace in the heart of the Oltrarno were home to the Medici, Lorraine and Savoy ruling families for three generations. One of the first residents of this wing was Grand Prince Ferdinando de’ Medici, son of Grand Duke Cosimo III, in the second half of the 17th century, while the last resident, Vittorio Emanuele III of Savoy, left it to the State, along with the adjacent Boboli Gardens, in 1919.
Inaccessible since 2020 and after nine months of restoration, the Royal Apartments have undergone a complex conservation process by a multidisciplinary team of specialists. Meticulous attention has been paid to every detail, from the ceilings to the floors, where carpets were removed to reveal a perfectly preserved parquet. In addition, the frescoes, stuccoes, carvings, silk wallpapers, draperies, paintings, furniture and ornaments were restored in depth. The decorative style of the apartments is “mixed”, reflecting the tastes and periods of the personalities and dynasties that inhabited them over the centuries. The apartments are open to the public again every day, with guided tours every hour from 10am to 6pm.
Alessandra Griffo, curator of the Royal Apartments at Palazzo Pitti remarks: “Reopening the apartments allows us to recover the vision of Palazzo Pitti in its entirety, not as a collection of independent museums but as a single palace. The work carried out respects the new layout in the 1990s, which used the 1911 inventory as a reference—the last to document the arrangement of these spaces, which were occasionally inhabited by the Savoy. Few changes have been made: some pieces have been rearranged and some paintings, otherwise kept in storage, have been introduced to better highlight the Medici era, when the apartment was inhabited by Grand Prince Ferdinando (1663-1713).”
The Green Room
In the late 17th century, this room was the Guard Room of the Grand Prince Ferdinando de’ Medici’s apartment (1663-1713), located in the right wing. Of the original furnishings, only the Allegory of Peace between Florence and Fiesole, painted by Luca Giordano (1634-1705) and commissioned in 1682 by Grand Duke Cosimo III (1642-1723), remains in the centre of the ceiling. The splendid chest of drawers, Vittoria della Rovere, decorated with hardstone inlays, was added later, contributing to the Medici character of this room. The decoration, including the green silk wall coverings and furnishings, was added during the reign of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine (1737-99 and 1814-59) and is attributed to Giuseppe Castagnoli. When the Savoy came to power in 1860, 18th-century French portraits were added to the room.
The Throne Room
In the Medici era, this was the Audience Room of Grand Prince Ferdinando’s apartment (1663-1713). Under the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty (1737-99 and 1814-59), it became the Room of the Chamberlains, the high-ranking court officials. The vaulted ceiling decoration dates to the first period of Lorraine rule and was carried out by Giuseppe Castagnoli. During the wedding of Archduke Ferdinand IV (1835-1908) in 1856, the room’s fabric was replaced with the current crimson silk and the imposing chandelier was installed. After Florence became Italy’s capital (1865-70), the Savoy transformed it into the Throne Room, adding a royal seat with the Savoy coat of arms.
The Celestial Salon
In the Medici era, this was the Cimbali Room, named after musical instruments, in Grand Prince Ferdinando’s apartment (1663-1713). In the late 18th century, the Lorraines turned it into a dining room and the ceiling was decorated with white and gold stucco. The Eagle Fireplace, created by Francis Harwood (1727-83), is also part of this period, and the blue silk fabric, which gives the room its name, dates back to the 19th century. The large wooden chandelier, the only surviving light fixture from the Medici period, was commissioned by Grand Duke Cosimo III in 1697. Several portraits painted by Giusto Suttermans (1597-1681) also hang here and were originally part of the palace’s furnishings.
The Chapel
This is the room in the Royal Apartments that best preserves its original Medici appearance from the time of Grand Prince Ferdinando, who is portrayed on the right. The alcove once housed a monumental bed and, above it, a small library was placed in a mezzanine hidden behind a carved and gilded screen. The stucco and cartouches on the ceiling feature mottos and symbols related to Ferdinando and were created by Giovan Battista Foggini (1652-1725). In 1765, Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Habsburg-Lorraine (1747-92) transformed this small room into a chapel. The red damask silk and the chandelier were added in the mid-19th century, reflecting 18th-century design. Under the Savoy, a partition was installed, creating a corridor along the window side, and the furnishings and paintings reflect the room’s various uses.
The Hall of Parrots
During the Medici period, this was the antechamber of Grand Prince Ferdinando’s (1663-1713) bedroom. In the late 18th century, the Lorraines redecorated the ceiling and installed a large stove. Under Grand Duke Ferdinando III (1769-1824), the walls were covered with fabric from the Lyon manufactory brought from Vienna in 1814. During the Restoration period, the imperial eagles on the fabric were misinterpreted as parrots and the room has carried that name ever since. Under the Savoy (1860-1919), much of the earlier decoration was retained and a crystal chandelier was added. The paintings, mostly from the late 17th and early 18th centuries, belonged to Grand Prince Ferdinando’s collection and were recorded in the 1713 inventory.
The Queen’s Sitting Room
In the Medici era, this was the private bedroom of Grand Prince Ferdinando (1663-1713). During the Lorraine period (1737-99 and 1814-59), it became the first room in the Grand Duchess’s private apartment, a role it retained under the Savoy. The stucco ceiling decoration from 1833 was commissioned by Leopold II of Lorraine (1797-1870) for his second wedding, and the furnishings, renovated in the late 19th century, reflect the taste of Queen Margherita of Savoy (1851-1926). The yellow silk fabric is of French manufacture, dating from the first decade of the 19th century. The paintings on the walls depict subjects related to the history of the Savoy family or scenes from the lives of four Tuscan artists: Giotto, Cimabue, Simone Martini and Michelangelo.
The Queen’s Bedroom
During the Medici period, this room was part of the apartment of Grand Prince Ferdinando (1663-1713) and was used for playing trucco, a game similar to billiards. Under the Habsburg-Lorraine family (1737-99 and 1814-59), the room was initially used as the Grand Duchess’s sitting room before becoming a bedroom. This function remained under the Savoy, and the room was used by Queen Margherita (1851-1926) during her stays in Florence. The blue and yellow silk brocatello, mounted in 1844, creates a calm atmosphere, accentuated by the two chaise lounges and numerous small pieces of furniture.
The Oval Room
With the adjoining Round Cabinet, this room was part of a set of new rooms commissioned by Maria Theresa of Austria (1717-80) between 1763 and 1765 for the arrival of her son, Pietro Leopoldo (1747-92) as the new Grand Duke of Tuscany. Architect Ignazio Pellegrini (1715-90) designed the room in an oval shape, fitting the Rococo style popular at the time. The gilded stuccoes were executed by Francesco Visetti’s Milanese workshop, while the brocatello marble fireplace is also by Pellegrini. The white silk satin wall covering, produced in Florence between 1780 and 1783, is the only one from Pietro Leopoldo’s period to remain in its original location. The room’s decoration reflects the Rococo taste for chinoiserie, which was highly fashionable at the time. The room’s purpose as a female sitting room or boudoir was retained through the centuries, and in the Savoy period, it was used by Queen Margherita (1851-1926).
The Round Room
The last room on the southern rondo, overlooking the terrace with views of Florence, the Round Room was part of the palace’s expansion ordered by Maria Theresa of Austria (1717-80) between 1763 and 1765, in preparation for the arrival of her son, Pietro Leopoldo (1747-92), and his wife, Maria Luisa of Bourbon-Spain. The neoclassical decoration, completed in the next decade, involved Domenico Ruschi (1762-82) for the stuccoes and Giuliano Traballesi (1727-1812) for the mural paintings. In the early 19th century, during the Napoleonic period, the room became a library, connected by an internal staircase to the upper floor. Under the Savoy, particularly during the reign of Queen Margherita (1851-1926), it was used for conversation and female work, as suggested by the small tables between the seating.
The King’s Bedroom
In the time of Grand Prince Ferdinando de’ Medici (1663-1713), this room was a passage lounge between his apartment and that of his wife, Violante Beatrice of Bavaria (1673-1731), with views of the Boboli Gardens. In 1765, with the arrival of Pietro Leopoldo of Habsburg-Lorraine (1747-92), the series of rooms was transformed into the Grand Duke’s private quarters: white and gold stuccoes decorated the ceiling and a large ceramic stove was installed. In 1820, a French yellow silk fabric was mounted, purchased by Ferdinando III of Lorraine (1769-1824) during his exile in the Napoleonic period. Under the Savoy, the room became the bedroom of King Umberto I (1844-1900), with Empire-style furniture along with other furnishings from the Medici-Lorraine wardrobe.
The King’s Study
In 1765, when Pietro Leopoldo d’Asburgo-Lorena (1747-92) arrived in Florence from Vienna, this room became part of his private apartment. Like the rest of the suite, the ceiling was decorated with white and gold stuccoes. The valuable silk wallpaper, produced by the Florentine manufactories, was installed a century later, during the reign of Umberto I of Savoy (1844-1900). The room was transformed into the King’s study, with a French mid-18th century writing desk, once owned by Louise Elisabeth, Duchess of Parma (1727-59).
The Red Sitting Room
The white and gold stucco decoration on the ceiling dates back to the first Lorraine period (1737-99). During the second Lorraine period (1814-59), despite the prominent presence of imperial symbols such as stars and bees, the Florentine damask was installed, created in the French style at the request of Elisa Baciocchi (1777-1820), Napoleon’s sister and Grand Duchess of Tuscany from 1809 to 1814. At that time, the room was used as the Audience Hall by Ferdinando III of Lorraine (1769-1824). The function was retained under the Savoy when additional furnishings were introduced, most notably the Savoy Cross.
The King’s Antechamber
This was the actual entrance to the private apartments of the Grand Duke and later the King. It is identified as the Antechamber of the Assistants to the Apartment of Ferdinando III of Lorraine (1769-1824), a role that continued under the Savoy. Both the white and gold ceiling decoration and the rare fabric panels date back to the late 18th century, although we know that the Florentine-made fabric was only installed in 1900.
