Palace Day Date in the current year: July 19, 2024

A palace museum is a museum housed in a former or even current royal residence that is open to the public. Some of the world’s most famous palace museums include the Louvre Palace (France), the Palaces of Versailles and Trianon (France), the Schönbrunn Palace (Austria), The Royal Danish Collection at Rosenborg and Amalienborg (Denmark), the Royal Palace of Madrid (Spain), the Museum of King Jan III’s Palace at Wilanów (Poland), the Royal Castle in Warsaw (Poland), the Royal Palace of Gödöllő (Hungary), the Het Loo Palace (Netherlands), the Palace Museum in the Forbidden City (China), the Topkapı Palace Museum (Turkey), and many others.

Originally places of power, these royal residences are now museums that offer an extremely varied cultural program to locals and tourists alike, receiving millions of visitors every year. They help to preserve and promote the rich cultural heritage of their respective countries while connecting the past and the present.

In 1995, the institutions in charge of the most prestigious palace museums in Europe came together to create the Network of European Royal Residences, which was registered as an association in 2001. Its main goal is to strengthen the collaboration between the staff of European royal residences that are open to the public and serve as museums. The Network has members in Austria, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Spain, France, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Monaco, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, and the UK.

Palace Day was conceived at a 2015 meeting of the digital teams of the members of the Network, who came together in Turin to discuss their respective challenges, projects, and social media strategies. At the initiative of the Palace of Versailles, they launched a joint social media campaign to educate the general public about the cultural importance of palace museums and encourage people to visit them.

The first Palace Day, held in July 2016, was a huge success with over 70 participants in 10 countries and more than 6,000 Tweets featuring the hashtag #PalaceDay, so it was decided to make it an annual event held every July 19. Every year, the Network chooses a new theme that is highlighted during the event. Past themes have included “Travels and international exchanges”, “Gastronomy and culinary traditions”, “Gardens and parks”, “Palace Day”, “Music”, “People inhabiting Royal Residences”, “Biodiversity”, “Astronomy, astrology, mythology”, and “Horsing around European courts” (horses and equestrian arts).

Palace museums can join the event by sharing their best pictures on social media with the hashtag #PalaceDay. They also have the option of registering to appear on the official map of Palace Day. Individuals can get involved by learning more about the world’s palace museums, taking a virtual tour of them, or even planning a trip to one or more palace museums.