Palais Buquoy, Baroque palace in Malá Strana, Czech Republic.
Palais Buquoy is a Baroque palace complex between Velkopřevorské náměstí and Maltézské náměstí in Prague's Malá Strana. Its main facade, fronted by a row of stone posts, uses optical illusion: it is only half as tall as the palace behind it, the rest being a screen. The south facade on Nosticova Street has two prominent projections, and a large walled garden extends east to Čertovka.
Jean Baptiste Mathey designed this structure in 1667 for a Bohemian count, and it subsequently changed hands several times over the following centuries. France acquired the property in 1930 and has maintained it as a diplomatic residence ever since.
The palace's name comes from the Longueval-Bucquoy family, whose ancestor Charles-Bonaventure commanded imperial forces at the Battle of White Mountain in 1620. Mozart and Maurice Ravel played in its music salon, and Miloš Forman filmed a scene from Amadeus in the Charles X salon. Since 1919 it has housed the French Embassy.
The property functions primarily as an embassy headquarters and is not open to regular visitors except during occasional cultural or diplomatic events. It is best to admire the exterior from the public square and explore the surrounding area, which offers easy access and good sightlines of the building.
A scene from Miloš Forman's film Amadeus was shot in the palace's Charles X salon. The building also holds furniture inherited from the Buquoy family, supplemented by pieces from the French Mobilier national.
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