The Royal Palace of Capodimonte (in Italian, Reggia di Capodimonte) was built in 1738 by will of Charles VII king of Naples and Sicily, who made it his hunting lodge near Naples. It served as royal palace for the House of Bourbon as well as for French sovereigns Joseph Bonaparte and Joachim Murat, and finally for the Savoy family, who lived here until 1948. Once the war was over, it was turned into a museum. Its royal apartments, on the first floor, are in part original and in part rebuilt; all of them are decorated with precious and luxurious furniture from past centuries.

Its walls protect masterpieces by some of the greatest artists in history: Raphael, Caravaggio, Michelangelo, Goya, Van Dyck, Mantegna, Parmigianino and dozens more. The museum inside offers visitors a unique experience, through an interesting synthesis of art from the 1200s to the 20th century. The initial collection was brought to the Reggia in 1735 by Charles VII, who had inherited it from his mother, but grew thanks to the royal families’ acquisitions and private donations. Between the 1700s and the 1800s, the palace became so important for Europe’s intellectuals and aristocrats that it was considered a “must-see” stop along the Grand Tour of Italy.