BRUCHSAL PALACE
Baroque Restoration of the Prince Bishop
Bruchsal Palace is one of the most beautiful examples of Baroque palaces in western Germany and the only religious residence in the region of the Upper Rhine, but its beauty today is the result of a massive reconstruction and recovery project. This area of the Rhineland was devastated by allied carpet bombing in 1945 and the palace complex was reduced to near rubble. A permanent exhibit inside tells the story of the restoration "Bruchsal Palace, Built, Destroyed and Raised Again" including the recovery of original designs, and the use of old handicraft techniques used, seen in workshop scenes and work sequences.
The Bruchsal Palace (Schloss Bruchsal), modeled on the French Palace of Versailles was built for the Prince Bishop Damian Hugo of Schönborn, the Bishop of Speyer. The wealthy bishop who ruled the region of southwestern Germany built a succession of palaces. The Bishop’s residence palace in Speyer was destroyed in 1689 during the Palatine War of Succession which saw many of the areas old medieval castles brought to ruin (see Frankenstein and Castle Hardenburg ). Following the war, the free Imperial City of Speyer was the central focus of the Protestant Reformation in the Upper Rhine (see Speyer Cathedral) and to avoid conflict with the Prince Bishop decided to remove his palace residence to the smaller city of Bruchsal.
The original plan called for 50 separate buildings to reduce the risk of fire destroying more than one. Construction was begun in 1721 and continued until the Bishop’s death in 1743. Several local architects were employed in the building, including Maximilian von Welsch, Anselm Franz Freiherr von Ritter zu Grünstein, and ultimately the famous Balthasar Neumann. Some of the rococo elements of the staterooms were added by Schönborn’s successor Cardinal Christoph von Hutten from 1751 to 1754. After the end of the religious absolute rule of the Prince Bishops, the palace passed into secular hands in 1803. From 1810 to 1832 the widow of the Baden Margrave, Countess Amalie von Baden, lived in a part of the palace, but thereafter stood empty for years, with some buildings used for government purposes until the World War Two bombing of March 1945. The state of Baden-Württemberg began restoring the palace in 1964, returning much of its former glory over two decades.
The fame of Bruchsal Palace is based on its inner rooms with their masterful room conceptions and decorations with the fantastic three dimensional illusion paintings by the fresco painter Giovanni Francesco Marchini and the staircase of Bruchsal Palace has been called "the queen of staircases" leading to ornate and fantastic banquet halls and state rooms, the Prince’s hall and the Marble Hall, representing the refinements of the rococo art at its peak.
Visiting Bruchsal Palace
The reconstructed state rooms of Bruchsal can be visited on guided tours by appointment and the smallish gardens offer some beautiful photo opportunities. In addition, the German Music Machine Museum (Deutsches Musikautomaten Museum) and the History Museum of the City of Bruchsal are both located inside. Bruchsal is about halfway between Karlsruhe and Heidelberg along the A5 autobahn. The Maulbronn Monastery is nearby (see Maulbronn Medieval Monastery) on the back road route to Stuttgart. © Bargain Travel Europe
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Schloss Bruchsal
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See Also:
HOHENZOLLERN CASTLE OF THE EMPERORS
NECKAR RIVER CRUISES - HEIDELBERG
AUGUSTUSBURG & FALKENLUST PALACES BRUHL
