Palazzo dei Celestini, now home to the Province and Prefecture, forms together with the Basilica of Santa Croce a single complex. The Celestine monastery used to be where the Castle of Charles V now stands. In fact, by order of Charles V, the Celestines had to settle on the current site.
In 1549, work began on a project by Riccardi, author of the cloister and portal of the adjacent Basilica. The façade is divided by pilasters, with two loggias on the sides, many decorated windows, cornices and heraldic shields.
On the whole, Palazzo Celestini and the Basilica represent the highest expression of Lecce Baroque.