Built between 1593 and 1598 at the behest of Carl Zengraf, Secretary of the Provincial States and ennobled by Archduke Ferdinand, Palazzo Coronini stood at that time on the outskirts of Gorizia, in an area known over the centuries as ‘Grafenberg’. The design, attributed to the military architect Giulio Cesare Baldigara, reflected the austere characteristics of a fortified house rather than those of the elegant Venetian villas.
In 1614, following the extinction of the Zengraf family, the complex passed to the Counts of Strassoldo, who transformed the building into a stately residence, giving it an appearance similar to that seen today. In 1643, the family chapel was built, connected to the palace by a double loggia; in the following centuries, the stables and other service buildings were added.
On 7 October 1820, Count Michele Coronini Cronberg purchased the Grafenberg estate and embarked on major extension and renovation works. In 1836, the palace hosted the exiled King of France, Charles X of Bourbon, who died there a few weeks after his arrival in Gorizia.
In the late nineteenth century, Alfredo Coronini transformed the surrounding grounds into a large English-style park, embellished with statues and decorative architectural features. During the First and Second World Wars, the complex sustained damage and was occupied by armies and military command posts. It was not until the early 1950s that the Coronini family returned to settle there permanently.
To prevent the family’s heritage from being dispersed, the last descendants of the family, Count Guglielmo Coronini Cronberg and his sister Nicoletta, decided to convert the residence into a museum and entrust it to a foundation. Following Guglielmo’s death in 1990, his wishes were fully realised with the establishment of the Palazzo Coronini Cronberg Foundation.
