Schloss Weilburg - Weilburg, HE-DE
N 50° 29.124 E 008° 15.677
32U E 447593 N 5592862
The baroque dominated castle of Weilburg dominates the old City of Weilburg in the Lahn Valley.
Waymark Code: WM10D3K
Location: Hessen, Germany
Date Posted: 04/17/2019
Views: 5
It is located on a spur above the river Lahn and occupies about half of the area of the Old Town of Weilburg. It contains the Hochschloss ("High Palace"), built between 1530 and 1572, which is one of the best-preserved Renaissance palaces in Hesse. In the 1700s, the palace was expanded by John Ernst, Count of Nassau-Weilburg, and his builder, Julius Ludwig Rothweil. The buildings and gardens now belong to the Verwaltung der Staatlichen Schlösser und Gärten Hessen, and they can be visited as a museum on guided tours. Parts of the palace are venues for the music festival Weilburger Schlosskonzerte, which is named after the palace.
Renaissance palace
The 1359 Gothic castle was demolished to make way for the Renaissance buildings.The Renaissance buildings are now called the Hochschloss (high palace). They form a square around a 40-by-34-metre (131 ft × 112 ft) central courtyard (Renaissancehof). Construction was begun by Philip III, Count of Nassau-Weilburg.The east wing (also called the Neuer Bau or "New Building") was built first, by architect Nikolaus Schickedanz, from about 1530 to 1539.It incorporates some pieces of the old Gothic castle.The west and south wings were built from 1540 to 1545 by architect Balthasar Wolf. The west wing was formerly the stables but became the kitchens in the 1700s.The north wing was built last, from 1560 to 1572, by architect Ludwig Kempf.It has "Dutch"-style dormers and a "Venetian"-style arcade of Ionic twinned columns.Some alterations were made in 1661, including half-timbered dormers and an additional gate.
Baroque extensions
The area of the Baroque buildings is almost 400 metres (1,300 ft) long and surrounds the old Renaissance palace.In 1703, John Ernst, Count of Nassau-Weilburg, commissioned builder Julius Ludwig Rothweil to expand the palace.He built the Obere Orangerie ("Upper Orangery") from 1703 to 1705.It is a broad, curving corridor connecting to the south side of the Renaissance palace. A combination of conservatory and ballroom, it has large windows on the inner, eastern side of the curve and trompe-l'œil tiles on the walls.
In the south, the Untere Orangerie was added from 1711 to 1713. It is rectangular and followed the model of the Versailles Orangerie.The roof terrace gives a view of the Lahn valley and the parterre garden in front. The Baroque parterre was re-landscaped in the 19th century but rebuilt from 1936 to 1939 according to the original Baroque plans.
At the south end of the Obere Orangerie,the town hall (Rathaus) and church (Schlosskirche) were built, and the garden terraces (Schlossgarten) were installed.In the west, the new Rentkammer and Kanzlei were built for the administration of the county.
Source: Wikipedia
Style: Baroque
Type of building (structure): Chateau or castle
Date of origin:: 1713
Architect(s): Julius Ludwig Rothweil
Web site of the object (if exists): Not listed
Address: Not listed
|
Visit Instructions:
Logging requirements: Please upload your own personal photo of the structure. You or your GPS can be in the picture, but it’s not a requirement.