The National Palace of Queluz and its historical gardens constitute one of the most extraordinary examples of the harmonious interconnections between the landscape and palatial architecture in Portugal.

They together illustrate how the tastes of the Court evolved over the 18th and 19th centuries; a period marked by the Baroque, Rococo and Neoclassical styles.

Commissioned in 1747 by the future Pedro III, consort of Queen Maria I, the Palace of Queluz was initially planned as a summer residence before becoming the favoured place for the leisure and entertainment of the Royal Family that were in permanent residence from 1794 through to their departure for Brazil in 1807 in the wake of the Napoleonic invasions.

The Portuguese School of Equestrian Art cares for some of its horses in the Palace of Queluz Gardens even while the regular public performances take place at the Henrique Calado Riding Ring on Calçada da Ajuda in Lisbon.