Ajuda National Palace

Ajuda was begun in 1795 to replace the wooden Real Barraca that burned down, itself put up after the 1755 earthquake destroyed the riverside palace. It was never completed: the court fled to Brazil in 1807 ahead of the French, work stopped, and the western wing stands unfinished to this day, its intended facade never built. Luís I and Maria Pia made it the royal residence from 1861 and the state rooms date from that period, kept largely as they were when the monarchy ended in 1910 - dining room laid, Maria Pia's private apartments, a ballroom, and a decorative collection of furniture, porcelain, glass and paintings that is one of the best of its kind in Portugal. The Royal Treasury museum, opened in 2022 in a purpose-built wing, holds the crown jewels and royal silver, and is ticketed separately.

History

King John V bought estates in Belém in 1726, and after the earthquake of 1 November 1755 King Joseph, unwilling to live under masonry, moved into a wooden residence on the Ajuda hill. When that royal tent burned in November 1794, a permanent palace was planned by José da Costa e Silva; clearing began on 17 July 1795 and the cornerstone was laid on 9 November, but work slowed after the royal family left for Brazil in 1807 (Wikipedia, Palace of Ajuda).

What to look for

• The state rooms - largely as left in 1910, with the private apartments of Maria Pia.
• The unfinished wing - a facade never built after the court fled to Brazil in 1807.
• The Royal Treasury - crown jewels and royal silver in a wing opened in 2022.
• The decorative arts - furniture, porcelain and glass from the nineteenth-century court.

When to go

Year-round. Two hours for the palace, longer with the Treasury. Closed on Wednesdays. Far less crowded than Belém below.

Things to know

Two separate tickets - palace and Treasury - and the combined price adds up. The building is genuinely incomplete and the exterior underwhelms. Uphill from Belém with a poor walking route. Rooms are dimly lit for conservation.

Nearby

The Ajuda botanical garden is beside it; Belém and the monastery are downhill.

Key facts