The Royal Palace in Naples was built between 1600 and 1602 as the residence of the viceroy Fernandez Ruiz de Castro Earl of Lemos. Its imposing mass is situated among S.Carlo road, Parco del Castello road, Ammiraglio Acton street and Plebiscito Square.

The main front is divided into two levels overhanging the arcade on the ground floor, and with the internal honour court-yard it is the only element existing from the original building of the XVII century. The arcade was modified in XVIII century by Luigi Vanvitelli, that closed some arches to turn them into niches; in 1888 Humbert the Ist ordered to put inside these niches some statues representing the biggest kings in Naples: Roger the Norman, Frederick the IInd of Swabia, Charles the Ist of Angiò, Alphonso the Ist of Aragon, Charles the Vth, Charles the IIIrd of Bourbon, the viceroy Joachim Murat and Victor Emmanuel the IInd of Savoy.

From the main entrance on Plebiscito Square you can enter to the big square honour court-yard, adorned with an arcade and an overhanging loggia. In the entrance-hall you can see the famous bronze door that originally was situated in the lower arch of the Triumph Arch in Castel Nuovo. The monumental honour staircase, adorned with some rich polychrome marble decorations, starts from the hall and leads to the first floor, where there is the Historical Apartment used by the kings and the viceroys of Bourbon dinasty till 1837.