Palazzo del Podestà (13th century)
This palace was built to house the Podestà, the foreign magistrate appointed annually from about 1214 to run the city. The palace also served as a papal residence in 1235 (for Pope Gregory IX) and 1251-3 (for Pope Innocent IV).
The oldest part of the palace stood on what are now the three right-hand bays of Palazzo Vescovile.
It was extended to the right in 1284 to form a new palace for Pope Martin IV. This involved vaulting Via della Maestà della Volte and incorporating part of the adjacent Palazzo delle Canoniche . Pope Martin IV died here in 1285, as did Pope Benedict IX in 1301.
This palace was badly damaged by fire in 1329, and was subsequently rebuilt: traces of three Gothic windows on the
1st floor of Palazzo Vescovile (visible in the illustration above) probably came from the 14th century
rebuilding.
Braccio Fortebracci, who lived here during his time as Lord of Perugia (1416-24), amplified and restored the palace for his own use, rebuilding the so-called Loggia di Braccio (as seen in the fresco detail below). The loggia provided a covered walkway from what must have been a ground floor door on the right of the façade of the palace (not visible in the fresco detail below) to a side door of the Duomo. A door above it on the first floor (again not visible in the fresco) must have allowed access from the palace to the balcony above the loggia, providing an admirable setting for public occasions.
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| Pilasters on the side of Palazzo Vescovile in Via della Maestà delle Volte, with the church of Maestà delle Volte behind. These pilasters supported the part of the palace that was built over the vaulted thoroughfare | Detail of a fresco by Benedetto Bonfigli |
The palace later served again as the residence of the papal legates. It was burned down again in 1534 when Ridolfo Baglioni took Perugia and murdered the papal representative, Cinzio Filonardi, who was resident there. Only the loggia now survives.
Return to Walk I.