Achilleion (Corfu)

The Achilleion is a palace built on Corfu for Empress Elisabeth of Austria after a suggestion by the Austrian consul Alexander von Warsberg. Elisabeth was deeply saddened by the tragic loss of her only son, Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria following the Mayerling incident in 1889, and a year later she had this summer palace built as a refuge. Achilleion is located at Gastouri, a village about ten kilometres south of the city of Corfu, and provides a panoramic view of the city to the north, and the southern part of the island, framed by the Ionian Sea to the east. The architectural style was designed to suggest an ancient palace of mythical Phaeacia. The motif centers on the hero Achilles of Greek mythology, from which the name is derived. Corfu was Elisabeth's favourite vacation destination and she wanted a palace to gratify her admiration for Greece, its language and its culture. The property currently operates as a museum under the management of the Hellenic Tourism Development Company, within the Greek National Tourism Organization.