Palazzo Gonzaga, Renaissance palazzo in Toscolano-Maderno, Italy
Palazzo Gonzaga, also called Palazzo Nuovo, is a two-storey civil building on via Benamati in Toscolano Maderno. It was built in the early 17th century for Duke Vincenzo I Gonzaga as a summer residence on Lake Garda, designed by ducal architect Antonio Maria Viani. A 20,000-square-metre park, the Villa del Serraglio, was linked to the palace by an underground gallery.
Vincenzo I Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, commissioned a summer residence on Lake Garda in the early 17th century from Antonio Maria Viani, prefect of the ducal buildings. Work was still unfinished when Vincenzo died in 1612. Francesco Gonzaga, third Marquis of Castiglione, died in the palace on 23 October 1616; the property passed to Vincenzo's eldest son Francesco IV Gonzaga and later to Carlo II Gonzaga-Nevers. After the Gonzaga fall it went to Leopold of Lorraine, then to Brescian nobles, and in 1933 to the Gaoso family.
The palace is also called Palazzo nuovo to distinguish it from the older Gonzaga residence in Toscolano. Duke Vincenzo I of Mantua commissioned it as a summer seat on Lake Garda, and Francesco Gonzaga, third Marquis of Castiglione, died here on 23 October 1616. After the Gonzaga line ended, the property passed to Leopoldo of Lorraine, then to Brescian nobles, and in 1933 to the Gaoso family.
The palace stands on via Benamati in Toscolano Maderno, on the shore of Lake Garda in the province of Brescia. It was restored after the 2004 earthquake that struck the Salò area, so parts of the structure were rebuilt or consolidated at that time. The building is a private property, not a museum, so visits depend on the owner's arrangements rather than fixed opening hours.
The original property was connected to Villa del Serraglio through an underground passage, allowing residents to move between the two buildings without going outside. The historic grounds included a sizable park planted with fruit trees.
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