Mogosoaia Palace
In Mogosoaia village, 10 km far away from Bucharest, in the early 1700’s, Konstantin Branković – Constantin Brancoveanu, the King of Wallachia, built a residence for his son Stephen and his family, called the Mogosoaia Palace. Constantine Brankovic was descendant of the Craiovesti /later Brancovian family/ and Basarab boyars. Constantine grew up in the Cantacusen family, actually was brought up according to the Orthodox life principles by his uncle Constantine Cantacusen, who was the wine server on the court of the prince Șerban Cantacuzino. From 1688 until 1714 Constantine Brankovich ruled the Wallachia, which was the vassal state of the Ottoman Empire. Constantine Brankovic highly supported the Eastern Orthodox Christianity and fought the infidels. Brancoveanu was, until his execution by Ottomans in Istanbul in 1714, a patron of fine arts, and the time of his rule is rightly seen as a “Romanian Renaissance”.
Constantin Brancoveanu brought masters from countries with a well established tradition in construction of the Mogosoaia Palace, and a new architectural style was born. An intriguing mixture of Renaissance and Oriental styles, this blend is nowadays known as “Brancovenesc”. The Mogosoaia Palace is a fine example of this architectural style, with wonderful garden and lake which provides great place to relax and have a pleasant walk. The structure is not particularly big, resembling a comfortable house with staircases, colonnades and balconies rather than an actual palace. The Mogosoaia Palace is at present visited by many curious tourists and visitors who want to have their memorable wedding or just to have a welcoming escape from the noisy downtown area of Bucharest.
