Bemposta Palace

The Bemposta Palace (Palácio da Bemposta), also known as the Paço da Rainha (Queen's Palace), is a neoclassical palace in the area of Bemposta, now the civil parish of Pena, in Lisbon. It was originally built for Queen Dowager Catherine of Braganza on her return from London to Lisbon and served for several years as her residence. It was then transferred to the Casa do Infantado (the property of the younger son of the King of Portugal), before becoming the residence of John VI of Portugal until his death. After Queen Maria II of Portugal transferred its title to the Army, it became the Portuguese Military Academy.

Eight years after the death of Charles II of England (in 1685), who left no legitimate son as heir to the throne, Queen Catherine of Braganza, daughter of John IV, returned to Portugal in 1693. Without a home in Lisbon, she resided in the homes of various noblemen for a time, including the Count of Redondo in Santa Maria or the palace of the Count of Aveiras, in Belém. She decided to purchase from Francisca Pereira Teles, the noble homes and land in Bemposta area in the centre of Lisbon, in order to build her residence. A chapel dating back to 1501 existed there and she requested the architect, João Antunes (1642–1712), to incorporate a chapel in the site plan under the invocation of Nossa Senhora da Conceição (Our Lady of the Conception). The project began in 1694, with Antunes coming on board in 1702, and by 1702 the Queen had already begun to live in the palace. The building was a mixed construction: limestone and marble was used in many of the flourishes, but the structure was built of reinforced steel, wood and masonry.

Catherine died here on 31 December 1705, leaving in her will the Palace of Bemposta to her brother, King Peter II of Portugal, who in 1668 had become regent on behalf of his mentally unstable elder brother Afonso VI of Portugal and king in 1683. On 29 October 1706 a royal chapel was constructed.

In 1707, King John V, made the house and lands part of the House of the Infantado, so that it became the residence of the Portuguese monarchy's Infantes and Infantas of the realm, such as Infante Francis, Duke of Beja, King John V's brother and Lord of the Infantado, and his son João da Bemposta, named so for having resided in the palace.

After the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, the palace required extensive reconstruction, including the royal chapel, which was completely destroyed. Under the direction of Manuel Caetano de Sousa (1742–1802), the building was remodeled and an elaborate chapel was constructed, with a rectangular vestibule and nave and polychromatic mosaics. A portrait of the royal family was commissioned for the main altar, Maria I and Infante John with the court, in an iconographic representation of Lisbon, seen from the Castle of São Jorge. The success of the chapel, came from the contribution of the woodworkers from the Church of São Roque (and in particular the Chapel of São João Baptista). A similar design esthetic was also brought in from the Royal Chapel in the Palace of Queluz. The Bemposta Palace had its own singers (since 1759) that incorporated an organist and singers, that were contracted and regularly performed in Lisbon. But, the organ had already been spirited away to the Palace of Queluz by 1778.

The palace too began to be abandoned, as the royals move to other preferred lodgings: by 1798 the palace was already abandoned and falling into ruin.

In 1803, the Prince-Regent, (the future King John VI) lived at Bemposta. Even after the return of the royal family, in 1821, John returned to Bemposta, and with the intent of making the residence more habitable, began various renovations in 1822, 1824 and 1825, principally in the rooms behind the chapel and on the floor near the gardens. At Bemposta the politics of King John VI's reign played-out: including the events of the insurrections known as the Vilafrancada and Abrilada, and his eventual death (he died in his personal quarters, on 10 March 1826).

In 1828, King Miguel began holding weekly audiences in the palace.