Palace in Schwetzingen, Germany
Rating: 8,0/10 (400 votes)  Schwetzingen Palace - the former summer residence of the Palatinate Electors, surrounded by a large park with numerous sculptures. The baroque castle was first mentioned in written sources from 1350. The palace, which has been rebuilt many times, served as a hunting castle, and at the end of the Thirty Years War it was destroyed. After the war, the castle was restored by Charles I Ludwig for his mistress Louise von Degenfeld. The remains of the former buildings were given to local residents for their construction needs. Soon, during the War of the Palatinate Succession, this castle was destroyed. Only the fortress walls were partially preserved. The palace took on its present appearance in 1697, when construction work began. The reconstruction project by the order of Elector Johann Wilhelm was prepared by I. Breuning. In 1752, a 70-hectare park was laid out. Then the palace theater was opened. In 1778, the residence of the Electors was moved to Munich; they rarely visited the palace. However, the work on the arrangement of the park and the decoration of the building continued. On both sides of the palace gates there are houses for guards, which today house a souvenir shop and a cafe. Outbuildings are scattered in the yard, and living quarters in the western part. In 1975-1991, restoration work was carried out, as a result of which the palace acquired its original appearance, the interior was given the appearance of the 18th century. Furniture, tapestries and other decorations of that era have been restored. The Palace Theater is designed in a classical style and opened in 1753 with the opera"Son of the Woods" (Ignaz Holzbauer). During the restoration work of the mid-20th and early 21st centuries, the theater was completely restored. The palace park is notable. It is divided into an English park and a French baroque park. Also, the park is divided differently: into the"Park of Allegories" and"Park of Reason". In the first - statues of various allegorical characters, and in the second - the Temple of Minevra, the Temple of Mercury, the Mosque, the Temple of Apollo, the Temple of Forest Botany, the Roman Water Castle, Arboretum. These buildings, according to the postulates of the Enlightenment, help to think constructively and creatively.     We also recommend reading Luther Memorial Sites in Wittenberg, Germany Topic: Palace in Schwetzingen, Germany. |
