Lucca, Italy


Fit for a princess Built in the 16th century, this grandiose villa in the Lucca hills was once home to Napoleon' s sister, Elisa Baciocchi Bona- parte, Princess of Piombino and Grand Duchess of Tuscany. La Madame, as her reluctant subjects, the people of Lucca, disparagingly called her, bought the prop- erty from a notable local family, the Mansi, and, for a time, shared it with her sister Princess Paolina Borghese. Today, the house is fully renovated, with 1,220sq m of living space, four bedrooms, a profusion of reception rooms, a library and a piano room, all set against the backdrop of jaw- dropping views across the Gulf of La Spezia to the islands of the Tuscan archipelago.


` This grandiose villa in the Lucca hills was once home to Napoleon' s sister, Princess of Piombino and Grand Duchess of Tuscany'


Additional accommodation is available in three renovated farmhouses (and there are two more to restore if needed, offering the chance of a fulfilling restoration project). The 102 hectares (252 acres) of parkland, formal Italian gardens, olive groves and woods house a swimming pool, a private chapel and a heliport. For sale at €30 million through Winkworth Italy (020± 8576 5579; www.winkworth.co.uk).


Country Life International, Summer 2011 55


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