Palazzo Margherita, formerly Palazzo Piombino, is a

palazzo A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

Via Veneto Via Vittorio Veneto (), colloquially called Via Veneto, is one of the most famous, elegant, and expensive streets of Rome, Italy. The street is named after the Battle of Vittorio Veneto (1918), a decisive Italian victory of World War I. Federico F ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. The usual name references Queen

Margherita of Savoy Margherita of Savoy (''Margherita Maria Teresa Giovanna''; 20 November 1851 – 4 January 1926) was Queen of Italy by marriage to Umberto I. Life Early life Margherita was born to Prince Ferdinand of Savoy, Duke of Genoa and Princess Elisabe ...

, who lived there from 1900 to 1926. In 1885, the

Boncompagni The Boncompagni is a princely family of the Italian nobility who settled in Bologna around the 14th century, but which was probably originally from Umbria. In 1572 they obtained the papal throne thanks to Ugo Boncompagni, who, with the name of P ...

- Ludovisi family chose to sell their ancestral family home in response to a severe financial crisis. The

Villa Ludovisi The Villa Ludovisi was a suburban villa in Rome, built in the 17th century on the area once occupied by the Gardens of Sallust (''Horti Sallustiani'') near the Porta Salaria. On an assemblage of vineyards purchased from Giovanni Antonio Orsini, ...

and most of its extensive grounds were sold in 1883 to a property developer, the

Società Generale Immobiliare Società Generale Immobiliare (SGI; en, The Society General fReal Estate) was once the largest real estate and construction company in Italy. It was founded in Turin in 1862 but then relocated to Rome in 1870 with the unification of Italy. After ...

, which in 1885 divided the property into luxury building lots. The family retained a small portion of the original estate around the Casino di Villa Boncompagni Ludovisi (Villa Aurora), the only building from the original holdings that was not demolished. However, the Casino was not designed to be the primary family home of a noble family. The Palazzo Piombino was built from 1886 to 1890 by

Gaetano Koch Gaetano Koch (9 January 1849 – 14 May 1910) was an Italian architect. Koch was born in Rome, where he made his name with several major works – Palazzo Koch, seat of the Banca d'Italia, and the two porticoed palazzi which form Piazza dell ...

for Rodolfo Boncompagni Ludovisi, titular

Prince of Piombino The Lordship of Piombino (''Signoria di Piombino''), and after 1594 the Principality of Piombino (''Principato di Piombino''), was a small state on the Italian peninsula centred on the city of Piombino and including part of the island of Elba. ...

, as a new palace for the Boncompagni-Ludovisi family. It occupied one of the new developer lots at a prominent location along the Via Veneto, the new main road that developers had built through the former Villa property. The Boncompagni-Ludovisi family occupied the house for barely a decade before being forced to sell it in 1900 due to further economic difficulties, including some due to the high cost of the new palazzo itself. After the assassination of King Umberto I in Monza in 1900, his son and successor King

Victor Emmanuel III The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

purchased the palazzo from the family as a suitable residence for the newly widowed Queen Margherita, who took up residence in the palazzo on Christmas Day, 1900 for the remaining 26 years of her life. She remained active in public life in her roles as queen dowager and queen mother, and the building in which she lived become known as Palazzo Margherita. After her death, the building was divided into offices for the Mussolini government. In 1946, the US government purchased the palazzo from the Italian government, and it now houses the United States Embassy in Italy. The palazzo was extensively renovated between 1949 and 1952 to restore rooms to their earlier appearance, while also modernizing plumbing and heating systems and increasing office space. The palazzo is now protected both by Italian law for cultural heritage and by listing on the U.S. Department of State Register of Culturally Significant Property.

References

''Part of this article originated from the corresponding Italian-language article'

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Additional Images

{{coord, 41.9068, 12.4908, type:landmark_region:IT-RM, display=title Palaces in Rome, Margherita

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

Register of Culturally Significant Property Ambassadorial residences Residential buildings completed in 1890 Italy–United States relations

Margherita Margherita is an Italian feminine given name. It also is a surname. As a word, in Italian it means " daisy". Given name As a name, it may refer to: *Margherita Aldobrandini (1588–1646), Duchess consort of Parma *Margherita de' Medici (1612 ...