| Beli Dvor | |
|---|---|
Бели двор | |
 Front view and main entrance | |
  Location within Belgrade | |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Neopalladian |
| Town or city | Dedinje,Belgrade |
| Country | Serbia |
| Construction started | 1934 |
| Completed | 1937 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Aleksandar Đorđević |
TheBeli Dvor (Serbian:Бели двор,lit. "White Palace") is one of two residences of theDedinje Royal Compound in theDedinje neighborhood ofBelgrade. It was the official residence of the Prince RegentPaul from 1934 to 1941.[1]
The palace was commissioned by and built with the personal funds of KingAlexander I as the residence for his three sons: Crown Prince Peter (the future KingPeter II and father of current Crown Prince Alexander), PrinceTomislav and PrinceAndrew.[1] Alexander I wasassassinated in 1934 inMarseille during a state visit toFrance, in the same year that the construction of the palace began. Supervision of construction was overtaken by the Prince Regent Paul until its completion in 1937. The QueenMaria and her three sons, continued to reside at Kraljevski Dvor during this time.[1] Prince Paul was the only member of the royal family to reside in the palace before the outbreak of the World War II and subsequentinvasion of Yugoslavia.
Following the end of the war, the new communist government seized the assets and property of the royal family. The Beli Dvor was used byYugoslav president,Josip Broz Tito, and later by the president ofFR Yugoslavia,Slobodan Milošević, for official state functions and receptions of visiting foreign dignitaries. Milošević received U.S. envoyRichard Holbrook at the palace before the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia began; Milošević later officially resigned his presidency in front of the Main Hall's fireplace.[2]
The palace was designed by architect Aleksandar Đorđević in a Neo-palladian style, inspired by 18th century English country houses such asDitchley Park. Its interior was decorated withEnglish Georgian and 19th centuryRussian antiques by the French design firmMaison Jansen, which later decorated theWhite House during the administration ofJohn F. Kennedy.[3]
Palace is housing notable art collection including paintings byPiero di Cosimo,Biagio d'Antonio,Nicolas Poussin (three paintings),Giovanni Cariani,Sébastien Bourdon,Albrecht Altdorfer,Titian,Rembrandt attribution,Palma Vecchio (two paintings),Carlo Caliari,Peter Paul Rubens,Carel Fabritius,Simon Vouet, two paintings byBrueghel,Antonio Canaletto,Eugène Delacroix,Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux,Giuseppe Crespi,Nicolae Grigorescu,Franz Xaver Winterhalter,Eugène Fromentin,Gaspard Dughet,Richard Parkes Bonington,Đura Jakšić,Ivan Meštrović,Vlaho Bukovac and others. The green and white Sèvres porcelain service was purchased in 1932 in Paris from the Gallerie Charpentier. The service once belonged to theCount of Artois.
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