Castelletto, the oldest building in Miramare Park, opens after restoration

After careful restoration conducted with full respect for history, building styles and original features, the Castelletto in Miramare Park opens to the public. A miniature castle with its own special character, at once simple and precious, it is theoldest building in the Park, which housed Maximilian of Habsburg and his consort Charlotte of Belgium while waiting for the Castle to be completed.

On a smaller scale, the Castelletto di Miramare is in the same style as the aristocratic mansion commissioned by Maximilian of Habsburg and his consort Charlotte of Belgium. Recent memory recalls the building standing in its ochre-yellow guise in Miramare Park, dominating at a vantage point overlooking Grignano Bay.

“The Castelletto was treated in the course of this long and painstaking restoration as a unique collector’s piece,” explained Historical Museum director Andreina Contessa on opening day, “of which we wanted to preserve the elegant, simple and intimate atmosphere, proper to the private apartments of the young archdukes who lived there for brief years.”

Designed by Carl Junker in 1856, the Castelletto, also called Klein Schloss or Gartenhaus, was completed in about a year and used by Maximilian and Charlotte occasionally until 1860, while waiting for the construction of the Castle to be completed. In later years it was used as a guest annexe: Maximilian’s mother and younger siblings, among others, stayed there.

The restoration

The restoration work was started in 2021 with a twofold objective: on the one hand to recover the legibility of the building’s original characters, and on the other hand to ensure its preservation, enhancement and return to public use, including envisaging several possible future uses.

In this regard, while the second floor, given its artistic value, will have a museum destination and will also be able to host small events, the ground floor will host a bookshop with high-end products and will be used to welcome visitors given also the upcoming construction of thepanoramic elevator uphill from Grignano.

The restoration work was supervised in all its phases by the Historical Museum’s Architectural Officer Francesco Krecic, who is also the single project manager.

The most recent enhancement and restoration of places hitherto closed to the public in the Miramare district will soon allow dedicated tours, with cultural accompaniment, to Bagno ducale, Castelletto and the Historical Kitchens starting from the first weekend in June. The service will be by reservation only and for groups of a minimum of eight people, upon purchase of the “Miramare special places” ticket, which also includes cultural accompaniment.

To mark the first month since the inauguration and while waiting for the Historical Kitchens to be reopened as well (and the “Visits to Special Places” service to be activated), special openings of the Castelletto are planned, subject to purchase of a ticket at the Castle: on Sunday, May 14 with visits by Museum staff, and on Sunday, May 21 with visits by Studio Didattica Nord Est.

Castelletto, the oldest building in Miramare Park, opens after restoration

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