THE HISTORY OF THE PALACE

From the ‘città panfilia’ to the ‘palazzo di tutti’

When Camillo Pamphilj acquired the fiefdom of Valmontone from the Barberini family in 1651, he had in mind a project so ambitious that the chronicles of the time referred to it as the ‘Panphilic City’, interpreting it as a late reflection of the Renaissance theory of the ideal city. In reality, the radical redevelopment of the town desired by the prince was aimed at upgrading the territory of Valmontone to the rank of ‘city’ and transforming it from a rural centre to a bishopric (to the detriment of Segni). To this end, he had roadways, an aqueduct, a market square and other functional services built for the village and its inhabitants. In 1652, the demolition of the Sforza Castle – previously belonging to the Counts of Valmontone – commenced, and in 1653 work began on the new palace, which was essentially completed in 1658. The architect responsible for the original design was the Jesuit Benedetto Molli (1600? – 1657), while from 1666 onwards, the last finishing touches, such as the construction of the loggia and the concave portico in the courtyard, were entrusted to Antonio Del Grande (Rome, 1607 – 1679).

The building appears to be an intermediate solution between a stately palace and a fortress. The compact volume of the monumental block, the appearance fortified with smooth ashlar corner profiles and the scarp base are features more akin to Roman architecture of the late 16th century than to innovative Baroque models. The layout of the rooms, which is repeated on all the floors, appears irregular: while the south side presents an airy succession of four large halls, the north wing consists of six small modular rooms arranged around a larger room, referred to on the piano nobile as the Prince’s Hall.

Since the 1980s, the building has undergone a gradual and continuous restoration process to restore the usability and decorum of a building that, after the Second World War, had become home to more than 150 families after undergoing numerous modifications to make it suitable for residential use. Between 1943 and 1944, Valmontone was almost completely destroyed by bombing and evacuees moved into the building. However, what seemed to be a temporary solution soon became permanent. Immediately after the war, the evacuees bought small units of the building from the Doria Pamphilj family, where they lived until the mid-1970s.

The first restorations focused on the Fire Room. Subsequently, consolidation and architectural restoration work was carried out on the so-called ‘East Wing’, the basement and the ground floor to house the Municipal Archaeological Museum, which was inaugurated in 2003. In the years that followed, the three external façades were restored and the entire piano nobile, including the loggia, was recovered. Today, the usable area of the building amounts to just over a third of the total.