Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna

The capital of Austria is one of the most interesting European cities for historical and cultural tourists. Every year (2019-2023) 13,2-14,5 million travellers visit Vienna to see the famous sights: art galleries, palaces, parks, museums, art exhibitions.

Schönbrunn Palace (Schloß Schönbrunn), as well as the Belvedere Museum, Vienna Opera House, Hofburg (the winter residence of the Austrian Habsburg emperors) are the most famous historical and cultural sites of the city. Over 3.7 million tourists visit Schönbrunn each year, and more than 5 million visitors to Vienna take in the sights of the palace park.

Schoenbrunn: a brief history of the palace

The first buildings on the site where Schönbrunn Palace now stands were built in the 14th century. At that time these lands belonged to the Klosterneuburg monastery. In 1569, the Habsburgs - representatives of the monarchic dynasty of Austria - became the owners of the estate.

According to legend, Emperor Matthias (Matthew), hunting in this place, discovered "beautiful springs" (1612). The German word combination sounds like Schöne Brunnen ("Schöne Brunnen"). This name was later adopted by the future palace.

The Austrian monarchs - the couple Ferdinand II and Eleonora Gonzaga - chose Schönebrunn for their favourite pastime - hunting. In 1637, the empress's husband passed away. Eleonora Gonzaga became the sole owner of the palace, settled here and gave the structure its name, which has remained to this day. The year of the foundation of Schönbrunn is considered to be 1638.

After the invasion of the Turks, the building was badly damaged. In 1696, on the initiative of Leopold I, the Holy Roman Emperor, the construction of a new palace began. It was designed by I. B. Fischer von Erlach, an Austrian sculptor and architect. The further history of Schönbrunn includes several stages:

• 1696-1713. - construction of the palace; Versailles, a palace ensemble located near Paris, the place of residence of French monarchs, was taken as a model;

• 1728 - the palace was acquired by Emperor Charles VI, who gave the building to Maria Theresa, his daughter;

• 1730s-1740s - thanks to Maria Theresa, Schoenbrunn became the centre of political, cultural, secular life of the country;

• 1742-1743. - works on the reconstruction of the palace;

• in 1752, on the initiative of Franz I - Maria Theresa's husband - a menagerie, later to become a zoo, was founded;

• since 1780 - after Maria Theresa's death - the Schönbrunn Palace complex became the summer residence of the Austrian monarchs;

• in 1805 and 1809, Napoleon Bonaparte, the French emperor, lived here;

• from 1848 the palace became the main residence of the monarchs of Austria;

• spring 1854 - during the preparations for the wedding of Franz Joseph I and Elisabeth, a Bavarian princess, the interior of the castle was significantly redesigned.

After the 1939-1945 war, parts of the palace buildings, as well as many other buildings in Vienna, were destroyed. Restoration work continued until the early 1960s. Since 1996, Schönbrunn Castle has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Schoenbrunn as a palace and park complex

Photo: Brian Dooley. Source: Flickr

The residence of the Austrian Habsburg emperors - Franz Joseph, Elizabeth, Maria Theresa and others - was erected by the end of the 17th century. The original style of the building was Baroque. About half a century later the building of Schönbrunn Castle was renewed. Rococo became popular in Vienna. It was this style that prevailed in the subsequent decoration of the interiors and facade of the castle.

The palace is now available for visitors to Vienna to see. Schönbrunn is an ensemble comprising a castle and a park with all the buildings on its grounds. The palace consists of 1,441 rooms of varying sizes. Only 45 rooms are open to visitors. Of the numerous rooms of the castle, a few of the most interesting rooms can be singled out, such as:

• Grand Gallery;

• Ceremonial Hall;

• Rosa-Zimmer - Rosa Room;

• Small Gallery;

• Hall of Mirrors;

• The White Gold Room;

• Berglzimmer (Bergl's rooms) - apartments of members of the imperial family;

• Tapestry salon;

• bedrooms of members of the imperial family;

• the castle theatre;

• The Red Salon;

• Monarchs' chambers;

• Napoleon's room;

• Archduchess Sophia's study.

Rococo is the style of decoration of the halls of Schönbrunn. The facade of the castle is an example of the Baroque style. The park surrounding the palace stretches 1 kilometre from south to north and 1.2 kilometres from east to west. The first gardens appeared at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries.

The Palace Park became accessible to the public in 1779. Since then, both summer and winter, the straight alleys of the gardens have been crowded with holidaymakers. On the territory of the modern park there are dozens of objects of genuine interest to tourists:

• Irrgarten und Labyrinth - labyrinth;

• Beautiful spring;

• Grand Parterre;

• Gloriette - Baroque pavilion;

• Roman ruins;

• Zoo;

• dovecote;

• Palm House;

• Imperial Carriage Museum;

• Japanese Garden;

• Kleine Gloriette - Small Baroque pavilion;

• numerous statues, fountains, and monuments.

Interiors of the castle

Photo author: mt 23. Source: wikipedia

Schoenbrunn is a luxurious castle in Vienna, often compared to the palace complexes of European capitals. The building consists of hundreds of spacious or smaller rooms. For a long period, Schoenbrunn served as the residence of the Austrian imperial family.

The castle also fulfilled representative functions. Official meetings, ceremonial events, receptions, ceremonies, festivals, and balls were held here. The western part of the castle was occupied by the living quarters of Empress Elizabeth. The eastern wing was the place of apartments of Maria Theresa, Franz Joseph I, other monarchs.

Hall of Mirrors

Spiegelsaal (Hall of Mirrors) is the name of one of the most luxurious rooms in Schoenbrunn. The white walls are decorated with gilded plaster mouldings. Two large crystal chandeliers hang from the high ceiling. The upholstered furniture in white with gilding (Rococo style) is made of natural wood.

On the walls hang seven large mirrors, reflecting each other and visually expanding the space of the hall. The windows are covered with red coloured velvet curtains. In the middle of the northern wall there is a high marble fireplace. The hall is decorated with Chinese vases of the XIX century, bronze clocks, elegant candles on the walls and prisercal tables.

For a long period, the Hall of Mirrors was used for ceremonial events. Under Maria Theresa, ministers took the oath of office here. In 1762, the six-year-old prodigy W. A. Mozart performed musical works for the Empress. The concert ended with the future great composer sitting on Maria Theresa's lap, embracing and kissing the monarch.

The Hall of Mirrors was later used as a salon-dining room. Audiences of Franz Joseph and Elisabeth were also held here. All sorts of people came here with petitions, requests, and to express their gratitude.

The Rose Room

There are three "Rose" rooms in the castle. All rooms are named after Josef Rosa, an Austrian painter. On the walls are placed 15 canvases painted by the painter (1760s). The paintings depict the natural landscapes of Northern Italy and Switzerland.

Decorating the great room is a portrait of Franz I Stephen. The emperor, standing at a table with a collection of art objects, is shown full-length. On the tables are beautiful Asian vases and gilded clocks. The ceiling is decorated with luxurious chandeliers.

Ceremonial Hall

The Ceremonial Hall (Zeremoniensaal) is one of the most luxurious rooms of the entire castle. It played the role of a hallway, next to which the apartments of the imperial family were located. Ceremonial events were held here: baptisms, namings, birthday celebrations.

The spacious room is decorated with six paintings by Martin Meijtens the Younger, a Dutch painter. One of the paintings is a portrait of Maria Theresa. The Empress is depicted as the First Lady of Europe, wearing a luxurious dress decorated with lace. In front of the monarch stands a table with a cushion on which lie the symbols of power - crowns or hats - of the four European states: Czech Republic, Austria, the Holy Roman Empire, Hungary."

The other five paintings show the wedding of Isabella of Bourbon-Parma and Joseph II in Vienna in 1760. Each painting depicts one of the events of the ceremony: the arrival of the princess at the Belvedere Palace, the cortege of festively decorated carriages, the wedding, the dinner, and the serenade.

Grand Gallery

Photo: Arpad Czapp. Source: Unsplash

There are several rooms in the castle where visitors most often want to go. One of them is the Grand Gallery. The room is striking in its size and rich decoration:

• length - 43 metres;

• width - 10 metres;

• total area - 420 square metres;

• crystal mirrors on high walls;

• on the ceiling are three paintings painted by Gregorio Guglielmi - Italian decorator, master painter, and muralist;

• there are 60 gilded sconces on the walls;

• two heavy chandeliers hang from the ceiling;

• the main decoration of the room is a statue of Maria Theresa.

The gallery was used for concerts, balls and festive receptions. Modern visitors look with great interest at the painting depicting Emperor Franz Stephan together with Maria Theresia. The couple are sitting on a high throne.

In 1961 the official meeting of Khrushchev and J. Kennedy - two state leaders of the USSR and USA - took place here. Nowadays the Grand Gallery is often used for concerts, receptions and festive events. The last renovation works took place from 2010 to 2012.

Bergl Rooms

Schoenbrunn, like other palaces in Vienna, reflects the long history of the Austrian monarchy. The apartments of the imperial family occupy part of the ground floor at Schoenbrunn. These rooms are known as the "Bergl Rooms." Each is named after the children of Empress Elisabeth's children.

The walls are decorated with frescoes painted by I. Bergl, a famous Austrian painter of the 18th century. The master of the brush created landscape paintings with unusual birds. The canvases are perceived as a continuation of the palace park, broken behind the high walls of Schönbrunn Castle.

In 1778, paintings by I. Bergl were decorated the apartments of Rudolf - Austrian Crown Prince. Later the reconstruction of the rooms was carried out. Subsequently the frescoes were painted over and restored only by 2008.

White Gold Room

Schoenbrunn Castle has several rooms decorated with bright gold mouldings. One of these is the White Gold Room, which, along with three other similar rooms, occupies the south-eastern part of the building.

The Weißgoldzimmer (weißgoldzimmer) - as the name of the room sounds in German - is 108 square metres square, 7.85 metres wide and 13.8 metres long. The room has an unusual second name - "Empress Elisabeth's gymnasium". Apart from the golden mouldings on the walls, the room is decorated with a tall marble fireplace on the north wall and a diamond pattern on the floor.

Small Gallery

Schoenbrunn, like other status buildings in Vienna, is rich in relatively small rooms that played an important role in the life of the palace complex. The Small Gallery was intended for banquets, concerts, and dinner receptions. The room with white gilded walls is decorated with ceiling frescoes made by G. Guglielmi.

Two marble busts of Maria Theresa's daughters, who became queens of Sicily and France, are also installed here. The two galleries, the Small and the Large, are connected by a narrow passage through an archway."

The salons of the castle

The castle is rich in small rooms from which you can learn a lot about the life, hobbies or daily life of the monarchs. When exploring Schönbrunn, visitors do not leave the three compact salons unnoticed:

• tapestry salon, decorated with beautiful 18th century Brussels tapestries; the pieces depict the signs of the zodiac, as well as the port of Antwerp (these territories were then part of Austria);

• the red salon, so named because of the colour of the interior - silk curtains on the high windows, carpet on the floor, wallpaper on the walls; there are also portraits of Princess Marie Anne of Savoy, emperors: Ferdinand I, Franz II, and Leopold II;

• blue Chinese salon, so named for the silk wallpaper of the Far East; during the 18th century in Vienna there was a widespread fascination with the art of East Asia, including China; visitors can see a painting depicting the last Austrian Emperor Charles with his wife Cita.

Castle Theatre

Photo: C. Cossa. Source: Wikipedia

Vienna's opera and drama theatres are well known to lovers of the stage arts. The Castle Theatre has been open to the public since 1747. The stage area, one of the best in Vienna, is still in use today. Dramatic plays, operas, comedies and vocal performances of the Vienna University of Music are performed here.

Historically valuable rooms

Each palace room has a unique interior design. Visitors show great interest in the four rooms associated with the names of famous historical figures. These are the following rooms:

• Napoleon's former bedroom; while in Vienna (1805, 1809), the French emperor used Schoenbrunn as his headquarters;

• porcelain room, which provided a study for Maria Theresa;

• The Million Dollar Room, the walls of which are decorated with rosewood, a valuable wood; the room is decorated with Persian-Indian miniatures depicting scenes from the lives of the rulers of the Mughal Empire;

• The Vieux-Laque-Zimmer is an old lacquered room used as the study of Franz I; the walls are covered with a thin layer of walnut wood panelling; portraits of the emperors Leopold II, Joseph II, Franz I can be seen here; the panels are lacquered and decorated with gilded frames.

Castle Park

Photo: manekj. Source: Pixabay

The first castle gardens were laid out in a relatively short period, from 1695 to 1699, by Jean Trehet, a Franco-Austrian landscape architect.

From 1779, the park became available to the public and quickly gained popularity as the best recreational spot for the citizens of Vienna.

Over a long period of time, several specialists living in different historical eras shaped the appearance of the green oasis in the Austrian capital. Most of the park's objects were created by four talented craftsmen:

• Adriaan van Steckhoven (Dutch gardener);

• Hetzendorf von Hohenberg (Austrian Classical architect);

• Richard van der Schott (Dutch gardener);

• Johann Christian Wilhelm Beyer (German sculptor).

Now the palace park, which occupies 17 hectares, is part of the architectural ensemble of Schoenbrunn Castle. Numerous fountains, monuments, architectural structures occupy the space of the Grand Parterre. Residents and guests of Vienna are genuinely interested in the 32 sculptures depicting characters from Roman-Greek mythology:

• Aspasia;

• Apollo;

• Paris;

• Ceres;

• Artemisia;

• Bacchus;

• Janus;

• Mars;

• Perseus and others.

One of the central objects of the park is the Neptune Fountain. The architectural and sculptural work is a large pool with an artificial grotto, above which rises the figure of the sea god. Marble and brick were used in the construction of the structure. The height of the sculptural composition is 7.4 metres, width - 44.8 metres, length - 101.6 metres.

The attention of visitors is drawn to the artificial Roman ruins, reproducing the appearance of the half-destroyed temple of Vespasian, located on the territory of the Forum in the Italian capital. The composition is decorated with statues of gods of two rivers: the German Elbe and Czech Vltava.

Visitors admire the beauty of the majestic Obelisk fountain (Baroque style). Nearby is an artificial rock with two grottoes. The Obelisk, standing on four turtles, is topped with a sculpture of an eagle symbolising the stability of the Habsburg Empire. The height of the structure is 31.2 metres. The obelisk is made up of 27 polished stone blocks.

Glorietta

Photo: Danor. Source: Pixabay

Next to the Neptune Fountain on the hill is the Glorietta, a large Baroque pavilion consisting of galleries and columns. The structure is dedicated to the Austrian victory over the Prussian army in the summer of 1757 (during the Seven Years' War). The height of the Glorietta is 25.95 metres, 241 metres from sea level. The length together with the two side staircases is 135.3 metres. The columns and galleries are composed of white stone.

The Glorietta was used as a banquet hall or dining room. It now houses a café. The Glorietta also serves as a vantage point from which the park, the castle, and the nearby status buildings of Vienna are clearly visible.

Labyrinth (Irrgarten)

A place of interest for children and adults is the labyrinth located north of the Neptune Fountain. A group of pruned ornamental shrubs is a system of tangled corridors, passages, dead ends. The task of each player is not to get lost and get out of the maze.

Irrgarten - that's the name of the labyrinth park in German - was founded in the early 18th century. Since then, the labyrinth has undergone significant changes. Several interesting objects are available for modern guests: a playground, corridors of ornamental shrubs, a giant kaleidoscope, and a climbing wall. There are no other attractions in Vienna similar to Irrgarten.

Zoo (Schönbrunn Tiergarten)

Photo: Dusan veverkolog. Source: Unsplash

Since 1752, the Schönbrunn Tiergarten ("tiergarten" is the German word for "zoo") has been welcoming visitors to the castle park. Now its total area is 17 hectares. The former Schönbrunn Menagerie is the oldest zoo on the European continent.

Visitors are keen to explore the enclosures, which are home to over 700 species of animals. The zoo is the only place in Vienna where you can see rarely seen mammals:

• orangutans;

• Amur tigers;

• koalas;

• African elephants;

• meerkats;

• polar bears;

• large pandas and others.

Relatively recently (2002), the zoo celebrated its 250th anniversary. Celebrations were held in Vienna. The Bank of Austria issued a special 5 € coin with an image of the Imperial Pavilion of the zoo.

Other attractions of the park

Photo: Wutzbert. Source: wikipedia

The Beautiful Spring, the fountain that gave its name to the palace and park ensemble, is located next to the Roman Ruins. The pavilion is a well house with two open arches. A statue of Egeria is placed inside. A spring nymph holds a vase from which pure spring water used to flow.

The castle together with the park have an important historical significance for Vienna as a place associated with the Habsburg era. However, there are many objects that are not directly related to the imperial dynasty, but are of interest to visitors. Among them are:

• The Palm House is the largest glass structure in Vienna and Europe; over 4,500 plant varieties grow here;

• a dovecote, which is a circular aviary made of wire mesh;

• The Little Glorietta is a two-story pavilion shaped like a tower; the interior walls are decorated with murals simulating three-dimensional imagery.

Wagenburg is the name of the Imperial Carriage Museum, unique even for Vienna, which is rich in cultural institutions. The collection includes more than 600 vehicles. The museum has been welcoming visitors since 1922. Visitors can view ornate imperial carriages, sleighs and coronation cars. Personal belongings and clothing of monarchs from the Habsburg dynasty can also be seen here.

Every year over 8.7 million Viennese and guests of the Austrian capital visit the castle together with the landscape park. Tourist interest in Schönbrunn can be compared to the popularity of such world-famous museums as the Louvre, the Hermitage, the Prado, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art."

Location of the palace

Schönbrunn is located 5.4 km west of Vienna's historic centre, marked on the map as Innere Stadt (Innere Stadt) - "Inner City". Tourists can quickly reach the palace from various points in the Austrian capital by public transport.

The district of Vienna where the palace complex is located is called Hietzing. There are several stops near Schönbrunn: Schloß Schönbrunn (buses 60, 10A, trams 60, 52, 10), Hietzing (line U4 of the Vienna Metro).

To get to the historic centre of the Austrian capital from Wien Schwechat International Airport ("Wien Schwechat"), tourists can use one of the four available ways (the fare for 1 passenger, current for 2023, is shown in brackets):

• Postbus - shuttle buses (€9.50);

• S-Bahn - city train (4,30 €);

• CAT - high-speed train (14,90 €);

• taxi, transfer (from 37 €).

The duration of the journey is 16-25 min. In the evening, due to traffic jams, it may take longer to reach the centre of Vienna by car, taxi or bus.