Peles Castle


King Carol I of Romania (1839-1914), one of the great Romanian kings and conqueror of the National Independence, first visited the region and future site of the castle in 1866, when he fell in love with the rugged but magnificent mountain scenery. So, in 1872, a total of one thousand "pogoane" (approx. 1300 acres) is purchased by the king and Piatra Arsa region becomes The Royal Domain of Sinaia, destined to be a hunting preserve and summer retreat for the monarch. On August 22, 1875, the foundation for Peleș Castle, the city of Sinaia, and indeed for the country of Romania itself was established. Several other buildings, annexed to the castle, were built simultaneously: The Guard's Chambers, The Economat Building, The Foișor Hunting Chateau, The Royal Stables. The Power Plant was also constructed then, and Peleș became world's first castle fully operated by electric power. The "Sipot" Villa was constructed later. This would serve as the work site of architect Karel Liman. Liman would later supervise the building of Pelișor chateau (1889-1903, the future residence of King Ferdinand and Queen Marie of Romania), as well as of the King's Ferdinand Vila in the Royal Sheepfold Meadow (the actual Sheepfold Meadow). First three initial design plans for Peleș were copies of other palaces from western Europe but king Carol I rejected them all as they were too costly and unoriginal. Second architect, Johannes Schultz won by presenting a more original plan, something that appealed to the king's taste: a grand palatial alpine villa combining different structures of classic European styles, mostly following Italian elegance and German aesthetics in Renaissance lines. The cost of the castle itself between 1875 and 1914 was estimated to be 16 000 000 gold Romanian lei (approx. $US 120 million today).