However, the choice of location by the architect (it would be in "Buenos Aires") and the size and architectural style of the building envisioned, inspired by Saint Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, led to the Secretary of State of the King, D. Diogo de Mendonça Corte-Real (1658–1736), to declare the project a show of megalomania. For this reason, D. João V decided to invest in a massive reconstruction of the Paços da Ribeira (Royal Ribeira Palace) in Terreiro do Paço, which did not survive the Lisbon Earthquake of 1755.