Beli dvor
| Beli dvor | |
|---|---|
| Бели двор | |
 Front entrance |
|
| General information | |
| Architectural style | neo-Palladian |
| Location | Dedinje, Belgrade, Serbia |
| Construction started | 1934 |
| Completed | 1937 |
| Technical details | |
| Size | 12 hectares |
| Design and construction | |
| Client | Aleksandar of Yugoslavia Elizabeth of Yugoslavia Pavle of Yugoslavia Josip Broz Tito Slobodan Milošević |
| Architect | Aleksandar Đorđević |
Beli Dvor (Serbian Cyrillic: Бели двор; English: White Palace or White Court)[1] is a palace located in the Dedinje neighborhood of Belgrade, Serbia. The palace is part of the Royal Compound, a real estate of royal residences and parks used by the royal family.
The Royal Compound covers an area of over 100 hectares, of which 27 hectares surround the Royal Palace and another 12 hectares the Beli dvor. The service buildings include kitchens, garages, Palace Guard buildings, the administration of the Office of the Marshal of the Royal Court, etc.[2]
Contents |
History[edit]
The palace was commissioned by King Alexander I, and built with his private funds for use by his three son's.[3] Designed by architect Aleksandar Đorđević, Beli dvor is a severe neo-Palladian structure that was inspired by 18th century English houses such as Ditchley Park. Its interiors were decorated with English Georgian and 19th century Russian antiques by the French design firm Jansen, which later decorated the White House during the administration of John F. Kennedy.[1]
While the Old Palace (Royal Palace) was being built, King Alexander I wanted to build a residence for his children (Crown Prince Peter later King Peter II, Prince Tomislav and Prince Andrej).[4]
After the King's assassination in 1934 in Marseille, Queen Maria and the couple's three sons, including the 11-year-old King Peter II, continued to reside in the Royal Palace (within the Royal compound) as well as the sprawling Novi Dvor (New Palace) in central Belgrade, which was the royal family's official residence, and is now the Presidency of Serbia. Construction of Beli dvor continued, however, and it was completed in 1936. Although historians often say that the building was completed in 1937, Princess Elizabeth of Yugoslavia was born in the White Palace in 1936, so it is safe to say that it was completed at that time.
It became the residence on loan to the Prince Regent and his family in waiting for King Peter II's majority.[2]
After World War II, when the Communist government seized control of Yugoslavia, Beli dvor was used by presidents Josip Broz Tito and later by Slobodan Milošević.
After revolution on October 5, 2000, the Royal Family, then living in the United Kingdom, was invited to return to Yugoslavia, and it did so, in 2001. Crown Prince Alexander, his wife, Crown Princess Katherine, and his three sons Prince Peter, Prince Philip and Prince Alexander, by his first wife, Princess Maria da Gloria of Orléans Braganza, now live in the Royal Compound.
Beli dvor is open to the public on weekends, for regular visits, during the tourist season, from April to November.[5]
The Royal Compound has also participated in Tourism Fairs in Belgrade and Novi Sad and during the Days of the European Cultural Heritage.,[6][7]
Art collection[edit]
The qualified tour guides at the Palace will tell any visitor that Beli dvor's notable works of art include paintings by: Piero di Cosimo, Biagio d'Antonio, Nicolas Poussin (3 works), Giovanni Cariani, Sébastien Bourdon, Albrecht Altdorfer, Titian, Rembrandt (2 attributions), Palma Vecchio (2 paintings), Carlo Caliari, Peter Paul Rubens, Simon Vouet, two paintings by Brueghel, Antonio Canaletto, Eugène Delacroix, Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux, Giuseppe Crespi, Nicolae Grigorescu, Franz Xaver Winterhalter, Eugène Fromentin, Gaspard Dughet, Richard Parkes Bonington, Đura Jakšić, Ivan Meštrović, Vlaho Bukovac and others. This collection was created by Prince Paul of Yugoslavia. Also the green and white Sèvres porcelain service was purchased by him in 1932 in Paris from the gallery Charpentier. The service once belonged to the Comte d'Artois.
Looting's and theft[edit]
Many works-of-art were looted by communist Partisans in 1944, following the liberation of Belgrade from German occupation. One of looted pieces includes Rembrandt school's painting 'Klint Tabie Maximus'.[8]
Selected works[edit]
- Piero di Cosimo, Forest Fire
- Domenico di Pace Beccafumi, Clelia's Escape (oil on panel, 64 cm x124cm) [9]
- Biagio d'Antonio, Madonna with Jesus and Angels
- Albrecht Altdorfer, Madonna Dream, 'Taking Maria to the Temple
- Andrea di Aloigi, The Worship of the Child (oil on panel,d.80cm,c.1500) [10]
- Palma Vecchio, The Holy Family with St. Catherine,St. John and Donor(104x167cm,c.1510)[11] and Self Portrait [12]
- Titian, Male Portrait
- Paolo Veronese Decorating Bull [13]
- Bernardino Licinio, Portrait of Noble Woman
- Giuseppe Crespi, Parable of the Prodigal Son
- Simon Vouet, Allegory composition ( 175cm x 157cm c.1640) [14]
- Nicolas Poussin, Adonis and Venus , Landscape with Three Monks (117x193cm)[15] and Landscape (drawing)
- Sébastien Bourdon, Landscape with Remains'
- Carel Fabritius attributed, Man with Flaute
- Melchior d'Hondecoeter,Different Birds
- Brueghel, Vase with Flowers
- Charles Le Brun, Macedonian Army Battle (tapestry 355 x 354 cm) [16]
- Antonio Canaletto, Channel in Venice
- Augustin Pajou, Portrait Bust of Countess di Bari (sculpture)
- Eugene Delacroix, Toilete of Algerian Woman (aquarel,35x29cm)[17]
- Alexander Roslin, Portrait of Grand Duchess Maria Feodorovna
- Ivan Aivazovsky, Walking on the Sea
- Jean-François Millet, Landscape with antique figures and beggers
- Franz Xaver Winterhalter, Portrait of Maria Alexandrovna
- Nicolae Grigorescu, Portrait of girl with red headscarf
- Emmanuel Frémiet, St.George and Dragon (sculpture bronze)
- Ivan Bilibin, The Tale of the Golden Cockerel and Fairy Tale about Emperor Sultane
- Georges Scott, Portrait of HM King Alexander I on the Horse
- Richard Parkes Bonington, Loggia of Imaginary Palace
- Félix Ziem, Grande Channel
- Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux, African Female Slave (sculpture)
- Vlastislav Hofman, Girl (1916)
- Rihard Jakopič, Girl with the lamb
- Gojmir Anton Kos, Girl
- Vlaho Bukovac, Purple Dream, The White Slave
- Paja Jovanović, Motive from Morocco and Portrait of King Alexander I Karadjordjevic
- Ivan Meštrović, Sfinga, Self Portrait, Njegos, Milos Obilic
References[edit]
- ^ a b James Archer Abbott, Jansen, New York: Acanthus Press, 2005
- ^ a b The Office of HRH Crown Prince Alexander II, The Royal Family of Serbia, Belgrade, 2007, page 23.
- ^ The White Palace - The Royal Family
- ^ Rados Ljusic, Karadjordjevici, Beograd: Narodna knjiga, Karic fondacija, 2001, page 98.
- ^ The Office of HRH Crown Prince Alexander II, PALACES OPEN FOR VISITORS UNTIL 25 NOVEMBER 2007 (press release), Belgrade, 7 November 2007.
- ^ The Office of HRH Crown Prince Alexander II, PALACES WELCOME EUROPEAN HERITAGE AND EXTENDED TOURIST SEASON (press release), Belgrade, 11 September 2007.
- ^ The Office of HRH Crown Prince Alexander II, ROYAL COMPOUND PRESENTED AT NOVI SAD FAIR 9-12 OCTOBER (press release), Belgrade, 9 October 2007.
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External links[edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Beli dvor |
- Official site of the Royal Family
- Oplenac, The Mausoleum of the Royal Family
- Aerial video of the Beli Dvor
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Coordinates: 44°46′13″N 20°26′56″E / 44.770381°N 20.44877°E
