Palazzo della Consulta

Map

Palazzo della Consulta

---

The Palazzo della Consulta was commissioned by Pope Clement XII (r. 1730-40) and built by the Florentine architect Ferdinando Fuga (1699-1782), between 1732 and 1737.

The facade is crowned with the pope's coat of arms, a large and elaborate affair, while the main entrance is surmounted by the coat of arms of the House of Savoy. 

The palace was built to house the secretariat of the Sacra Congregazione della Consulta, which served as the main council of state for the Papacy. After the annexation of Rome to the Kingdom of Italy, on September 20th 1870, Prince Umberto I and his wife Margherita of Savoy lived there. His father, King Vittorio Emanuele II (r. 1861-78), lived just across the road in the Palazzo del Quirinale. 

From 1874 to 1922, the Palazzo della Consulta housed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and from 1924 to 1953 the Ministry of the Colonies. Since 1955 it has been the seat of the Constitutional Court of the Italian Republic. 

---

Palazzo della Consulta

Coat of arms of Pope Clement XII (r. 1730-40)

Coat of arms of the House of Savoy