Smaller than Peles a few hundred metres above Peles, it was built between 1899 and 1903 for Charles I’s grandson Ferdinand and his wife Marie. Ferdinand reportedly found Peles Castle too austere. As at Peles, visits to the Pelisor Palace are by guided group tour only, but the groups are smaller.
Pelisor Castle is a small palace built on the grounds of Peleș Castle (in the Prahova Valley). Built between 1899 and 1902 by the Czech architect Karel Liman and decorated by the Viennese artist Bernhard Ludwig, Pelisor Castle became the summer residence of the Romanian Crown Princes from 1903.
It was built at the behest of King Charles I, as the residence of Crown Princes Ferdinand and Maria.
The furnishings and interior decorations, largely by Bernhard Ludwig, indicate a residential space (hall, study, chapel, “golden room”), which is a tribute to the innovations of the artistic movements of the early 20th century.
Pelichor has only 99 rooms, compared to Peles Castle with 160 rooms. The whole house was decorated to be a princely residence, and bears the imprint of a powerful personality: Queen Mary. The entrance hall is panelled with oak. The gilded bedroom is decorated according to the Queen’s plans and designs with furniture carved in gilded lime wood. The Queen’s study has also been decorated according to her plans, and the walls of the Golden Room are decorated with thistle leaves, a motif dear to the Queen as it was the emblem of her native Scotland. This is also where their children grew up: Charles (the future King Charles II), Marianne (Queen of Yugoslavia), Elizabeth (Queen of Greece) and Nicholas.
Last modified: November 17, 2022
