The Estoi Palace in the Algarve, about 11km from Faro, in the village of Estoi and in the vicinity of the Roman Ruins of Milreu, presents us with a complex that includes the Palace and the large gardens that surround it, with adornments of tiles, busts , statues and adorned with ponds and fountains.
Reading Time: 4 minutes
History
The Estoi Palace in the Algarve, also known as Casa de Estoi and Quinta de Estoi, was originally called Jardim de Estoy.
Francisco José Moreira de Brito de Carvalhal and Vasconcelos inherits in 1782, on the death of his father, Fernando José de Seabra Neto, from one of the best known families in the Algarve, Jardim de Estoy.
The existing building will have been built or rebuilt around 1783. The works will have been directed by the Architect Matthew Vincent de Oliveira, responsible for the National Palace of Queluz, with which it has some similarities.
In 1875 José Maria Pereira do Carvalhal, owner of the complex due to family inheritance, died. Without heirs, he left in a will that when the Palace and gardens were to be sold and that the sale price be offered to the poor.
In 1893 the complex was sold in a state of great degradation to a wealthy pharmacist, politician and owner in the District of Beja, José Francisco da Silva.
He rebuilt the Palace and the gardens, acquiring many works of art, both in Portugal and abroad, to ornament them.
The architect and decorator Domingos António da Silva Meira was responsible for the work. He was notable for the ornamentation of some rooms of the Pena Palace in Sintra, commissioned by D. Fernando II, King Consort of Portugal, better known as King Artist.
For his great effort in the restoration of the Palace of Estoi, José Francisco da Silva, received the title of 1st Viscount of Estoi, in 1906. King D. Carlos of Portugal awarded him this title for the service rendered to his land.
This is a property that many authors classify as the most significant work of Algarve Romanticism.
Estoi Palace
Three rooms stand out that mark the eclecticism of this Palace:
- Noble Hall
- Blue Room or Living Room
- Dining room
The size of the rooms, decoration and furniture delight us.
The Palace's ancient cuisine is very interesting. It is worthwhile to appreciate the old telephone system, the stove, the chimney and the tile decoration.
Garden
The Palace is surrounded by gardens with fountains and ponds.
It is decorated with statuary and tile panels.
Cultural Heritage of Portugal
The Palácio de Estoi in the Algarve was considered a Property of Public Interest in 1977 and acquired by the Municipality of Faro in 1987.
Finally, the Pousada was adapted by Architect Gonçalo Byrne and opened in 2009, becoming, in 2015, one of the Pestana Group's units of excellence, integrated in the Small Luxury Hotels of the Word.
You can download the 1988 text by Prof José Mesquita for free.
Estoi Palace
Send download link to:
Location of Estoi Palace
See too
- Roman Ruins of Milreu
- Lisbon Museum of Ethnology
- Bacalhoa Palace and Farm
- Ajuda Garden and Palace
- History of Lisbon's Praça do Comércio
Portuguese
English
Portuguese
