TheProject for the Royal Palace and Patriarchal Cathedral of Lisbon by Italian architectFilippo Juvarra was an ambitious proposal for a monumental complex located along theTagus river inLisbon, projected to house both a royal palace of KingJohn V of Portugal and a new cathedral for thePatriarch of Lisbon. Juvarra planned the palace in 1719 for the modern-dayLapa neighborhood, though the works were never realized.[1][2]
At the beginning of the reign of King D. João V there were several deliberations on the possible construction of a sumptuous Royal Palace and a Patriarchal Cathedral,[1] dedicated to Saint Mary of Portugal.[3] The project was not only intended to create a symbol of the imperial power of the magnanimous monarch but also to celebrate the attribution of the position ofPatriarch to theArchbishop of LisbonTomás de Almeida (1670–1754) by thePapal Bull «In supremo apostolatus solio» byPope Clement XI (December 7, 1716). The place of construction would be either in a riverside area west of the Terreiro do Paço, called "Buenos Aires", or in the Terreiro do Paço itself. The initial studies were commissioned by an Italian architect namedFilippo Juvarra, who arrived in Lisbon in January 1719 and worked on the schemes until July of that year. During his stay he also made schemes for the creation of a monumental lighthouse on theTagus river mouth.[4]
However, the choice of location by the architect (it would be in "Buenos Aires") and the size and architectural style of the building envisioned, inspired bySaint Peter's Basilica in theVatican,[3] led to theSecretary of State of the King,D. Diogo de Mendonça Corte-Real (1658–1736), to declare the project a show of megalomania. For this reason, D. João V decided to invest in a massive reconstruction of thePaços da Ribeira (Royal Ribeira Palace) in Terreiro do Paço, which did not survive theLisbon Earthquake of 1755.[2]
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