The history of the Royal Gardens (Venice) dates back to the reform project of the Marciana area commissioned by Napoleon: in 1806, following the designation by Bonaparte and Viceroy Eugenio di Beauharnais of the Procuratie Nuove in Palazzo Reale, the architect Giovanni Antonio Antolini built the first projects for the residence, which was to be equipped with a garden, to be set up on land overlooking the San Marco basin already occupied by the Terra Nova Granaries, a Gothic building built in 1340 and once used as a location for the grain market and for small shops.
With the fall of Napoleon and the return of the Austrians to Venice, the Royal Gardens were the subject of new interventions: the side facing the lagoon was enriched by the construction of a greenhouse on the bridge of the Mint and, on the opposite side, an elegant Coffe House designed in neoclassical style by Lorenzo Santi (1783–1839) between 1815 and 1817. A drawbridge over the Rio della Zecca was built to connect the green spaces directly to the Procuratie, in order to allow it to be used as a garden of the Royal Palace with a promenade on the water.
In 1857 the avenue along the shore was separated from the Gardens and opened to the public, by the will of Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian, while the Gardens remained for the exclusive use of the Court and in 1872, to allow access from the Piazzetta di San Marco, it was built on the Rio della Zecca a new iron bridge flush with the water.
In 1893 the bridge between the garden and the palace was replaced with a new iron drawbridge, designed by the civil engineer Filippo Lavezzari. At the end of the 19th century, a pergola with an iron and cast iron structure was built which is one of the main elements of the architecture of the Gardens.
On 23 December 1920 the Royal Gardens were entirely open to the public and handed over to the Municipality.
The garden has gradually fallen into disuse, so much so that in 2014 the Italian state property that owns it, decided to give it in concession to the Venice Gardens Foundation Onlus for 19 years to ensure the recovery and restoration of the gardens themselves, most of all. the structures contained therein with a loan from the Generali company. The architect in charge was Paolo Pejrone.
Royal Gardens
Address: Fondamenta dei Giardini, San Marco, 30124
Phone: +390413121700
Site:
https://www.venicegardensfoundation.org/orari-e-regolamento-di-visita-dei-giardini-realiLocation inserted by
Mariella