as the court are not at present at casserta, we have not seen that place in all its splendour; we passed, however, one very agreeable day there, with lady h—— and s—h—— f——n.
the palace at casserta was begun in the year 1750, after a plan of vanvitelli; the work is now carried on under the direction of his son. while the present king of spain remained at naples, there were generally about two thousand workmen employed; at present there are about five hundred. it will be finished in a few years, and will then, unquestionably, be one of the most spacious and magnificent palaces in europe. it has been said, that london is too large a capital for the island of great britain; and it has been compared to a turgid head[302] placed on an emaciated body. the palace of casserta also seems out of proportion with the revenues of this kingdom. it is not, properly speaking, a head too large for the body; but rather an ornament, by much too expensive and bulky for either head or body. this palace is situated about sixteen miles north from naples, on the plain where ancient capua stood. it was thought prudent to found a building, on which such sums of money were to be lavished, at a considerable distance from mount vesuvius. it were to be wished, that the contents of the cabinet at portici were removed from the same dangerous neighbourhood. that he might not be limited in ground for the gardens, may have been his spanish majesty’s motive for choosing that his palace should be at a distance from naples; and that it might not be exposed to insult from an enemy’s fleet, was probably the reason that determined him to place it at a distance from the sea.
[303]
this immense building is of a rectangular form, seven hundred and fifty feet english, by five hundred and eighty; about one hundred and twelve feet high, comprehending five habitable stories, which contain such a number of apartments as will accommodate the most numerous court, without any accessary buildings.
the rectangle is divided into four courts, each of about two hundred and fifty-two feet by one hundred and seventy. in each of the two principal fronts, are three corresponding gates, forming three openings, which pierce the whole building. the middle gate forms the entry to a magnificent portico, through which the coaches drive. in the middle of this, and in the centre of the edifice, there is a vestibule of an octogonal form, which opens into the four grand courts at four sides of the octogon; two other sides open into the portico, one to the staircase; and, at the eighth side, there is a statue of hercules,[304] crowned by victory, with this inscription,
virtus post fortia facta coronat.
the grand staircase is adorned with the richest marble; the upper vestibule to which you ascend by this noble stair, is an octogon also, and surrounded by twenty-four pillars of yellow marble, each of which is of one piece of eighteen feet high, without including the pedestal or capital. from this upper vestibule there are entries into—but i have a notion you are tired of this description, which i assure you is likewise my case. i beg, therefore, you may take it for granted, that the apartments within, particularly their majesties, and that destined for balls and theatrical entertainments, correspond with the magnificence of the external appearance.
among the workmen employed in finishing this palace and the gardens, there are one hundred and fifty africans; for[305] as the king of naples is constantly at war with the barbary states, he always has a number of their sailors prisoners, all of whom are immediately employed as slaves in the gallies, or at some public work. there are at present at casserta, about the same number of christian slaves; all of these have been condemned to this servitude for some crime, some of them for the greatest of all crimes; they are, however, better clothed and fed than the africans. this is done, no doubt, in honour of the christian religion, and to demonstrate that christians, even after they have been found guilty of the blackest crimes, are worthier men, and more deserving of lenity, than mahometan prisoners, however innocent they may be in all other respects.
the gardens belonging to this palace are equally extensive and magnificent. a great number of fine statues, most of them copies of the best antique, are kept in a storehouse till the gardens are finished,[306] when they will be placed in them. the largest and finest elephant i ever saw is here at present; he is kept by african slaves: they seem to know how to manage him perfectly; he is well thriven, and goes through a number of tricks and evolutions with much docility and judgment.
in the garden, there is an artificial water and island. this, if one may venture to say so, seems a little injudicious; it brings to our memory the bay of naples, with its islands, a recollection by no means favourable to this royal contrivance. in this island there is a kind of a castle, regularly fortified, with a ditch around it, and ramparts, bastions, sally-ports, &c. &c. and a numerous train of artillery, some of them nine or ten ouncers. i no sooner entered this fort, than i wished that uncle toby and corporal trim had been of our party; it would have charmed the soul of the worthy veteran and his faithful servant.
i asked the man who attended us, what he imagined this fortification was intended for?—sir h—— f—— said, “the cannon were certainly designed against the frogs, who were continually attempting to scale the ramparts from the ditch.”—i asked again, what was the real design of erecting this fort? the man answered, stretching out his arms, and making as wide a circle with them as he could, “tutto, tutto per il sollazo del re.” “yes,” said i, “it is surely in the highest degree reasonable, that not only this fort, but the whole kingdom, should be appropriated to the amusement of his majesty.”—“certo,” replied the man. i wished to see how far the fellow’s liberality would go—“not only this kingdom,” continued i, “but all europe would be highly honoured in contributing to the amusement of his majesty.” “certo, certo,” said the man.
