Graz Castle

The castle is a large complex consisting of two to four stories, built around three courtyards.The castle gate we see today is a remaining part of the former courtyard wall, which was built by Domenico dell’Allio in 1554. Originally, it was included as part of the medieval city fortifications.There was a corridor that connected the Graz Cathedral to the castle on the Grazer Schloßberg. Additionally, there was another concealed corridor leading to the castle.The gate was originally designed as a Renaissance portal, but in 1676, its Renaissance decoration was removed and it was given a rectangular rustic frame instead.The gate leaf, which has iron fittings, dates back to the time when the gate was originally constructed.

The Friedrichsbau suffered significant damage in 1945. Subsequently, between 1950 and 1952, a new building was constructed to replace the sections that had been demolished in 1853/54. The remains of the original building have been carefully preserved. There are several dated stone tablets on the eastern outer wall that date back to 1447 during the reign of Emperor Friedrich III.

Located in the northeastern section of Graz Castle, you will find the Friedrichsbau. This three-story building has an irregular and elongated shape, making it the oldest part of the castle. Its elongated design serves as a reminder of the previous path of the city wall.The exterior walls display a sleek and polished appearance.There is a protruding chapel in the eastern part.Located in the northeastern section of the Friedrichsbau, there is an impressive late-Gothic gate building. This structure features a spacious candle arch and a rectangular bay window adorned with a double arcade window. In the past, a bridge connected this building to the moat.There is a chamfered round arched gate on the eastern side.On the western front, there are three ground floor structures with walls and pointed arcades supported by polygonal pillars.

On the side that faces the second courtyard, there is a Gothic hall known as the Friedrichshalle. This hall used to be open and has two aisles. It features a star-shaped cell vault that is supported by a polygonal central pillar.Due to structural considerations, a concrete ring was used to partially encase this pillar.

The first floor features a chamber chapel, commonly referred to as such, that was constructed in 1447, as indicated by its date.In the 19th century, this building had two floors that were separated by a false ceiling.Today, the upper part of the room consists of a small four-bay area with double choir niches.The structure is supported by a ribbed vault that rests on narrow wall friezes, featuring pointed belt and shield arches.The presence of a double choir suggests that the church may have had dual patronage, possibly dedicated to both Saint Mary and Saint George.Today, the partially bricked-up windows feature two-piece tracery and pointed arches.There are two disc keystones that bear the motto of Emperor Friedrich III and are dated back to the year 1447. There is a polygonal wall service on the chancel wall, which features a console adorned with a relief of an eagle.The key blade on the front door is a 17th-century design shaped like a guard armed with a spear.The upper portion of the chapel has been repurposed as a meeting room, while the lower portion has been transformed into a storeroom.

The castle gate, located in the southern part of the castle, has a rich history. It was first documented in 1346 and underwent reconstruction during the mid-15th century.The original crown from the late Renaissance, which had a resemblance to that of a country house, was taken down in 1676.The structure features a passage that is covered by a barrel vault and has chamfered pointed arch gates.The eastern facade features glazed, two-storey column arcades that were constructed over pillar arcades in 1566/67.The arcades underwent a renewal in 1952.The northern passage was constructed in 1873, while the southern passage, as indicated by an inscription, was built in 1934.

The Maximilianbau is a slender, four-story building located in the southern part of the castle complex. It was constructed between 1494 and 1500.The building suffered damage from bombs during World War II and underwent partial renovation in 1949.The outer facades have a smooth texture.On the southern side, there is a late Gothic gate with a chamfered flat arch. This gate leads to a barrel-vaulted passage, which in turn takes you to the second courtyard.Above the gate, there is a stone tablet dated 1453 with an inscription of the motto “AEIOU,” which belonged to Emperor Friedrich III of the Holy Roman Empire.Additionally, there is a relief stone coat of arms depicting Empress Eleonore Helena of Portugal.The gate on the other side of the passage features a flat-arched design and is beautifully profiled in the late Gothic style.Above this gate, there is a stone tablet dated 1495. Additionally, there are late Gothic double windows with a strutted keel arch lintel.

The southern staircase features a door panel made of wrought iron dating back to the third quarter of the 18th century. This panel showcases a forged warrior figure from the 17th century.In 1951, Fritz Silberbauer created a secco painting within a wall niche, depicting the reconstruction of the castle in 1949.

Located in the south-west of the Maximilian building, there stands a four-story stairwell tower that was constructed between 1499 and 1500. Within this tower, you can find a remarkable double spiral staircase.The stair tower features a floor plan in the shape of a polygon, with sleek exterior facades and window frames made of stone with bars.The funerary stele of Belatullus, which dates back to the first or second century, and the funerary stele of C. Duronius Martialis, dating from the middle of the second century, were both incorporated into the walls of the tower in 1506.The entrance to the tower is through a red marble portal with a mullioned shoulder arch. This portal is distinguished by a mason’s mark.

The staircase is widely recognized as a prominent illustration of late Gothic architecture and stonemasonry. It underwent restoration in 1955 and again in 1976/1977.The building features a pair of staircases with two arms each, leading up to the second floor. These staircases are adorned with stone spindles and follow an elliptical floor plan.Both runs are self-supporting and anchored solely in the wall.The two barrels meet once more, ascending floor by floor.The cheeks have a blind tracery resembling a fish bladder.There are barred keel arch portals on two of the upper floors, and a rectangular portal on the last floor.

The Karlsbau was constructed between 1570 and 1571, situated to the southeast of the Friedrichsbau and the Maximilianbau. The design for this building was created by Pietro Ferrabosco, who served as the imperial court architect.The building consists of two to four stories and features smooth exterior facades, along with a high crested gabled roof.In 1968, repairs were made to the eastern front and the roof.The remaining exterior was restored in 1970.

Rabbi Nissim, who passed away in 1387, was laid to rest in a tombstone that was incorporated into the western outer wall of an abandoned Jewish cemetery.The stone window frames on the eastern facade of the building date back to the time when it was constructed.The arbor was originally constructed in 1836 and has since undergone renovations.The wing of the grille is made of wrought-iron and dates back to the second half of the 18th century.The facade on the south side appears fragmented and underwent restoration in 1952.On this side, there is a massive round arch known as the Bossensteinportal. It was constructed during the third quarter of the 16th century.The gate is made of sheet metal and its fittings likely date back to 1618.Above the gate, you will find an adorned entablature featuring a console and a dentil frieze.Additionally, on the southern side, you can discover the remnants of a colonnade that was enclosed in 1832. This area is commonly referred to as the trumpeter corridor. Furthermore, there is a rectangular bay window supported by ornamental corbels.On the right side of the bay window, there is a stone wall that bears the date 1463 and the motto “Kaiser Friedrich III.”During the summer of 2013, an intriguing late-Gothic wall niche was uncovered on the façade of the first courtyard. This niche, measuring approximately 70 centimeters in depth, was adorned with beautiful paintings depicting floral and bird motifs. To preserve and protect this remarkable find, it was carefully glazed.The area was previously sealed off with bricks and gradually tapers into a narrow passage that leads to a window-like opening on the back wall.This suggests that it could be either a former aviary or an entry and exit hole for ornamental pheasants that were housed in the building.

The Karlsbau entrance features a flat ceiling that is supported by sturdy stone pillars.In 1846-1847, a two-armed staircase adorned with stone carvings by Peter Pokorny was constructed in the southeast, replacing a staircase that dated back to the Renaissance period.The rooms on the ground floor are adorned with cross vaults.During the 19th century, the majority of the rooms located on the upper floors underwent refurbishment.Both floors feature several stucco ceilings dating back to the second quarter of the 19th century.The Karlsbau features an enclosed arcade arch and a relief entablature adorned with antique-style decorations.Within one of the spandrels, there is a scrollwork cartridge crafted from sandstone in either 1550 or 1552. This cartridge features a relief depicting a single-headed eagle, which represents the coat of arms of King Ferdinand I.The restoration took place in 1976.Several tiled stoves from the late 18th and early 19th centuries have been preserved until today.The furnishings and paintings in the representative rooms today are on loan from the Universalmuseum Joanneum.There is still a surviving piece of Biedermeier furniture created by Joseph Ulrich Danhauser in 1823.

The registry wing, also known as the northern wing of the castle, was constructed by Marc Antonio Tadei from 1581 to 1585. It is believed that an additional section was added in 1591, which incorporated the remnants of the medieval city wall.The building, originally two-storey and elongated with 15 axles, was expanded in 1917 and 1918 based on the designs by Franz Drobny.The building featured two-story Renaissance arcades, with the upper floor being bricked up in 1918.The sgraffiti in the spandrels depict stylized foliage, and there is a blind balustrade on the upper floor.

Between 1950 and 1952, a new building known as the New Castle was constructed. It consisted of three to four stories and was located to the south and west of the first and second courtyard. This area was previously occupied by the Friedrich building, which was demolished in 1853/54.On the southern outer wall of the building, there is a sandstone relief created by Alexander Wahl in 1952. Additionally, in the same year, Fritz Silberbauer painted a sgraffito in the south-east corner of the building, depicting the coats of arms of Graz and Austria.In 1952, Alfred Wickenburg created a series of wall frescoes in the hallway of a newly constructed building. These frescoes beautifully depicted various views of Graz, including its art monuments.

The Styrian Gallery of Honor was established in 1959 in the second courtyard. It features marble portrait busts of notable individuals such as Hugo Wolf, Josef Stammel, Johann Joseph Fux, Peter Rosegger, Peter Tunner, Viktor Kaplan, Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach, August Musger, Ulrich von Liechtenstein, Alexander Girardi, Anna Plochl, and Paula Grogger.These busts were created by a group of talented artists including Erwin Huber, Othmar Klemencic, Ulf Mayer, Josef Papst, Gottfried Prabitz, Alfred Schlosser, Erich Unterweger, Lia Rigler, and Margarete Wilburg.

The castle bastion, constructed from 1556 to 1562, underwent a transformation in 1568. It was converted into a delightful pleasure garden by Hans Richter, the court gardener of Archduke Charles II.The Burggarten we see today was originally a pleasure garden.Originally, this area was much larger. However, Empress Maria Theresia decided to cede parts of it to the Styrian estates. As a result, the Grazer Schauspielhaus was constructed on the ceded land.

The greenhouse in the garden was built in 1841.On the former bastion, there are two sandstone figures dating back to the late 17th century. These figures depict Samson and Herakles. They were brought here from the vestibule of the dyers’ barracks, which were demolished in 1904.Additionally, there are statues depicting the personified figures of Lex and Justitia, along with the Grazer panther created by Anton Kakon between 1806 and 1807. There is also a group of putti present.The statues were originally located on the attic of the old classical Graz town hall.In the garden, there is a liberation monument crafted by Wolfgang Skala in 1955.There is a collection of dragonflies, which were designed by Alexander Wahl in 1961, located near the water system.

In September 2021, the artist Wolfgang Becksteiner presented his artwork titled “Distant Closeness” in the Burggarten in Graz. The purpose of this artwork is to serve as a commemoration of the COVID-19 pandemic.