The court is a place where justice is realized.
Regardless of social status, anyone who goes to court has the right to count on respect and impartiality. Taking into account the role of the judicial system in society's life, the government and municipalities of different countries allocate funds for the construction of new modern buildings.
Perhaps the court is not the place where you really would like to go. However, many buildings are so beautiful that you may want to visit them at least with a guided tour. That is why tourists come to some cities specifically to look at the architectural masterpieces, in which the courts are located.
We offer you the TOP-10 of the largest court buildings in the world. You should definitely see them, at least in the pictures!
Court Building (Kuala Lumpur) (Malaysia)
The Kuala Lumpur Court Building is the largest courthouse in the world. In fact, this is a whole complex that covers an area of 12 hectares. It took 3 years to build the project.
The building houses the Civil Court of First Instance, 21 criminal court halls, 26 magistrate hearing rooms, and 30 family court rooms. In addition, there is a library, a recreation area and a park. The construction cost is estimated at $ 76.3 million.
Palazzo di Giustizia (Italy)
Almost all the judicial organs of Florence are located in this building. The area where the building was erected was formerly the site of a Fiat factory.
The project of the Palace of Justice was developed in the 1970s by the architect Leonardo Ricci, but the implementation of the project began only in the 2000s, after the death of the architect. The construction dates were postponed several times, and the building was commissioned only in 2012 instead of 2006. And this is not surprising, since the total usable area of the building exceeds 800 thousand m2.
Currently, most of the city's judicial bodies are located in the palace complex: the court of appeal, the prosecutor's office, etc. Thanks to the relocation of all these courts to a new building, nine buildings in the historic center of the city have been vacated. Only the juvenile court is placed in a separate building, as required by Italian law. Several thousand people work in the Florence Palace of Justice.
International Court of Justice (The Hague / Netherlands)
The Peace Palace, which is the official residence of the UN International Court of Justice and the permanent court of arbitration, was built at the beginning of the 20th century with a donation from the American industrialist Andrew Carnegie. It is located in the center of a 7-hectare park. A recognizable feature of the building is the 80 m high clock tower.
It has one of the world's largest libraries of public international law, as well as the Museum of the History and Activities of the International Court of Justice and other organizations ever operating in the palace. Interior elements are wooden sculptures, stained glass windows, mosaics, tapestries and other pieces of art, donated by the countries participating in the two Hague conferences, symbolize the diversity of world cultures.
Palais de Justice (Paris, France)
Of all the sights of Paris, the Palace of Justice deserves special attention. It is located on the Île de la Cité and occupies a separate district with an area of 4 hectares, which makes up almost half of the island. Here, in several buildings, which are a separate palace complex, are located the Court of Cassation and Appeal, as well as several departmental institutions.
For four centuries since the very formation of France, there was the Cité Palace, which was the residence of the French kings. Charles V was the last monarch to stay here, after him the residence was moved to the Hotel Saint-Paul, and then to the Louvre. Only the royal administration and the state apparatus remained on the Île de la Cité - the Paris Parliament, the Audit Office and the Treasury. Today, the entire judicial system of France is concentrated here, which can be called a city within a city. It even has its own criminal police.
The Palais de Justice is an organic mixture of the architectural styles of the 13th-20th centuries. From the original royal palace, only the labyrinth of cellars and prisons, the Conciergerie building and the Holy Chapel, which today house museums, have survived. High-profile trials with such famous personalities as Émile Zola and Mata Hari took place here.
Palazzo di Giustizia (Italy)
The courthouse is one of the landmarks of Rome. Here is the seat of the Supreme Court of Cassation. It seems that such a large building was erected many centuries ago. But in fact, the Roman Palace of Justice appeared in 1911. The construction took 22 years.
It is associated with one of the largest corruption scandals in the country. The long construction time and the scale with which the palace was built gave rise to suspect the architect Calderini of financial fraud. This led to a tragedy in the fate of the architect, he committed suicide.
Nevertheless, the building was still used for its intended purpose. It is located in the Prati area. One of the main advantages of the building is its appearance: a lot of decorating elements in the form of statues and stucco moldings are concentrated on the castle. The Romans call the building the "Ugly Palace".
Justizpalast (Nuremberg, Germany)
This building is famous for the Nuremberg Trials, when the Nazis were tried in Hall No. 600 for their atrocities. This is what makes it one of the main attractions of the city, although the palace is relatively 'young' - its construction was completed in 1916. The internal area of the building is approximately 65 thousand m2.
The location of the trial - the Palace of Justice in Nuremberg - was not chosen by chance. It was here that the congresses of the Nazi party were regularly held, for which Nuremberg was called "the city of congresses of the Reich party." After the end of the trial, the palace building remained the property of the American administration. 20 years later, on June 30, 1961, it was transferred to West Germany. Hall No. 600 was reconstructed, the walls and ceiling were faced with panels of precious wood, new furniture was installed, and a huge cross was hung over the judge's bench. Since then, the Bavarian justice system has been using it to conduct court hearings.
In 2010, the Museum of the History of the Nuremberg Trials was opened in the Palace of Justice. 4.2 million euros were spent on the creation of the museum. The funds were provided in half by the state government of Bavaria and the federal government of Germany.
Palais de Justice de Bruxelles / Justitiepaleis van Brussel (Brussel, Belgium)
This building is considered the largest built in the 19th century. The work went on for 20 years. It covers an area of 52 thousand m2. The height of the main hall is 97.5 m. For the construction, an entire area in Brussels had to be cleared.
"Unprofessional architect" is the most censorship nickname given by some Belgians to Joseph Poulard, the author of the project of the Palace of Justice in Brussels. The negative reaction of the locals was caused by the fact that about 3 thousand private houses were demolished for its construction. The authorities provided the evicted people with new housing, but still the day after the opening of the palace, newspapers reported that the townspeople had "desecrated" the symbol of the judiciary. If you think about the main attraction of Brussels, then it is easy to guess in what way.
The place for the construction was chosen for a reason - on the Galgenberg hill, that is, the Gallows Hill, where death sentences were carried out since the Middle Ages. Today, the Palais de Justice houses the Court of Cassation. For several years now, the building has been covered with scaffolding, large-scale restoration work is underway, and the dome shone with gilding. From the upper, open gallery, a beautiful panorama of Brussels opens up.
The grandiose structure, reminiscent of the Babylonian ziggurat, gradually became the symbol of the new united Belgium.
Palazzo di Giustizia (Milan, Italy)
Another building that took up an entire block. If you count in meters, you get about 30 thousand m2. The Milaneses built their Palace of Justice in 8 years. It houses the headquarters of the Court of Appeal, the Tribunal and the Magistrates' Court. Outside, the building is designed in a restrained style, but the interior design makes up for the external stinginess. Here you can see the works of Italian painters and sculptors.
The building was conceived on the initiative of the Spanish Governor Gabriel de la Cueva y Girón, Duke of Albuquerque, and Archbishop Carlo Borromeo, who also provided the initial funds for the construction. The project was entrusted to the Milanese architect Pietro Antonio Barca (1586-1639).
The building was also called the "new prison" as it housed inmates as well. In the north wing, now overlooking Piazza Cesare Beccaria, was the executioner's house and execution site. In fact, for this reason, the square was named in the nineteenth century after the abolitionist Cesare Beccaria. From the original design, the façade overlooking Piazza Fontana and the central courtyard, while the rest is the result of subsequent extensions and renovations carried out by the architect Piero Portaluppi after the damage inflicted during the Second World War.
Justizpalast (Munich, Germany)
This building is considered one of the most beautiful in Germany. It is located in the city center between the central train station and the Royal Square. The court first opened its doors in 1886. The building, which is 138 m long and 80 m deep, has a huge glass dome about 67 meters high.
The author of the project was the famous city architect Friedrich von Thirsch, who designed the building in the neo-baroque style with the addition of Renaissance elements.
The palace still belongs to its original owners - the building is occupied by the Bavarian Supreme Court, the Bavarian State Ministry of Justice, as well as a large number of chambers of the Munich Regional Court.
However, the courthouse is of interest not only from an architectural and administrative point of view, but also from a historical point of view: it was here that a trial was held against members of the anti-nazi underground group White Rose, which operated during the Third Reich and was liquidated in 1943. Also within the walls of the Palace of Justice was a loud trial of Vera Brunet, the former wife of the composer Lothar Brunet, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of her lover.
Palais des comtes (Poitiers, France)
The Poitiers courthouse is one of the oldest surviving palaces.
The Palais des comtes in Poitiers was built by Charlemagne for his son Louis the Pious in the 9th century. Then, after the collapse of the Frankish Empire, the palace became the residence of the Counts of Poitiers, and in the 12th century the building was completely destroyed by fire. After the fire, the palace was restored by the counts in the form in which it can be seen today.
The architecture of the palace is presented in the Gothic style, and the gardens spread around are made in the same style. On the territory of the residence, 19 different statues were erected, 16 of which have survived to this day. At the end of the 17th century, the palace was abandoned, and at the beginning of the 19th century it was transferred to the courthouse, at the same time large-scale restoration work was carried out.
Bonus!
Supreme Court of Cyprus
Compared to similar projects, the Supreme Court of Cyprus building is very young. It was built in 2005 in the island's capital - Nicosia. But the total area of the building is 11 thousand m2.
The architecture of the facility is driven by the decision of the designers to create uniquely shaped courtrooms. This approach defined the interior layout of the building, separating the public space from the private spaces occupied by judges.
The Cyprus Supreme Court building has 13 courtrooms, 18 judges' offices, auxiliary offices, conference rooms, multipurpose rooms, a library, a cafeteria and an underground car park. Work on the construction of the building took several years, and its cost was 8,500,000 Cypriot pounds. It is worth noting that during the construction of the court, workers found a medieval tombstone, which led to the need to redesign the site to include archaeological discoveries.
If you are looking for interesting housing options in Cyprus, then check out the DOM Real Estate Portal. Here you will find residential and commercial properties for every taste and budget.
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