Portal:Bulgaria/Selected article/11

Euxinograd (Bulgarian: Евксиноград [ɛf.'ksi.nu.grat], also transliterated as Evksinograd or Euxinograde) is a former late 19th-century Bulgarian royal summer palace and park on the Black Sea coast, 8 km north of the city of Varna. It is currently a governmental and presidential residence.

The construction of the palace began soon after the land which it occupies was given to Knyaz Alexander of Bulgaria as a present by the Greek bishopric on 16 March 1882. There had previously been small monasteries called St Demetrius and St Constantine at that place, the buildings of which were subsequently converted into another small residence.

Viennese architect Viktor Rumpelmayer designed the palace, which was named Sandrovo in 1885 after the Italian diminutive of Alexander's name — Sandro. Later the knyaz extended the estate to its contemporary area of 80 hectares.

Built after the French Château de Saint-Cloud, Euxinograd is often considered to be one of the best examples of post-Liberation architecture in Bulgaria. After the French chateau was destroyed in 1870, Ferdinand bought the pediment of its right-hand wing for the Euxinograd palace in 1890-1891. The palace was designed after the French 18th-century château style, with a high metal-edged French roof, figured brickwork and a clock tower.