Castles & Palaces In Salzburg
Throughout the Middle Ages and the Baroque, the prince-archbishops erected several homes in and around Salzburg. Out of them, Schloss Freisaal is regarded as the oldest. Built in the sixteenth century, this moated fortification was based on an estate recorded in 1392 by Prince Ernst of Bavaria, then the administrator.
Comprising an amazing palace complex in the busy city center, the Old Residence is Many courtyards decorate the house, so accentuating its grandeur and appeal. Originally the official residence of imperial princes and archbishops, it housed imperial family members until the end of World War I. Over the years, the structure has been rebuilt using mediaeval masonry from the 16th to the 18th centuries. Comprising a palace complex from the 17th century, the New Residence, sometimes known as the New Building, is Prince Archbishop Wolf Dietrich also built a guest house, maybe meant as both his permanent residence and a lodging for visiting princes. Within the structure are the Salzburg Museum and the Glockenspiel. Comprising a tower and a rococo facade, the town hall is another prominent construction in the city center. Early in the 15th century, the city bought the structure; it rebuilt it entirely between 1616 and 1618; at last, it acquired its current look in 1772.
Once a grammar school, the amazing 17th-century architectural complex known as The Old University is Prince Archbishop Markus Sittikus started the establishment; it is housed in the wing north-west. The complicated comprises a private chapel honouring St. Charles Borromeo. It was rebuilt starting in 1630 after being established as a Benedictine university in 1620. Originally court stables for the prince-archbishops, the festival halls lie south of the ancient university. Additionally part of the same complex are the old summer and winter riding schools. Separated by a lane, the horse pond sits to the west. Passing via the Sigmundstor and Neutor, this street links the Riedenburg area with the old town. Made from rock in the 18th century, Austria’s oldest road tunnel
Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau started building the Mirabell garden palace in 1606 as a payback to Salome Alt. Altenau Palace was named in her honour. Markus Sittikus von Hohenems construct the Hellbrunn palace complex between 1613 and 1615. Stunning garden complex highlighting the Mannerism style is the Lustgarten. It is outside of town and easily reachable from it by the Hellbrunner Allee. The park boasts ponds, fountains, grottos, sculptures, and water features among other elements. Monthly castle events take place at the Hellbrunner Berg with its stone theater cut out of the rock. Comprising the castle and outbuildings, the park is located in the north-west corner of the complex right at the base of the hill. A wall encloses the facility, so fostering a feeling of privacy. Designed symmetrically, the old prince-archbishops’ vacation estate stretches from an avenue leading from the Salzach. Though Anif Castle is also included into the landscape axis, the main axis of the garden runs with Goldenstein Castle. Not far from the building of Hellbrunn Palace, a series of little castles were erected along Hellbrunner Allee. Names for the castles in the landscape garden mirror their past and the people connected with them. Captain Kayser, who built the Frohnburg for Baroness von Frohberg, bears name on the Kayserburg piano. Herrenau Castle bears the Herren-Au meadows and woodlands as its namesake. The Lasser family inspires the Lasserhof name. To one of the co-builders, Prince Archbishop Markus Sittikus von Hohenems, Emslieb Castle and Emsburg Castle, to the south of the avenue, pay homage.
Prince Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun ordered the building of Schloss Klessheim, and gifted architect Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach was assigned it. Northwest of the city sits this great palace. Leopold Anton von Firmian completed the project finally. After the stop in Kleßheim mansion building, Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt was hired by new prince-archbishop Franz Anton von Harrach to turn Mirabell into a magnificent baroque estate. Built for Prince Archbishop Leopold Anton von Firmian and his nephew Lactanza, Leopoldskron Castle boasts a large castle pond.
Early in the 15th century, the cathedral chapter took over Aigen Castle, a palace at the base of the Gaisberg. The castle’s proprietorship has been shifting rather regularly. Two small houses belonging to the Pallottines are located on the Mönchsberg: Marketenerschlössl and Johanesschlössl. Apart from the Kapuzinerberg, Paris Lodron built the Franziskischlössl, and the Kühberg houses Neuhaus Castle, which resembles castle-like fortification.
Hohensalzburg Fortress
Standing on the Festungsberg mountain, the huge castle complex known as the Hohensalzburg Fortress has existed since the 11th century. With a built-up area of almost 7,000 m2, this castle—which draws almost a million visitors yearly—stands out as one of the biggest fully restored castles in Central Europe. Second only to Schönbrunn Palace and Zoo and the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, this castle is a hugely popular tourist destination in Austria.
While the inside provides the ease of audio guides for a more immersive experience, the outside fortifications can be investigated at your own speed. German and English versions of a “Special Guided Tour” have been accessible during the summer months following July 2009. This tour transports guests to the 16th century so they may engage with disguised castle servants. Special visits are the only means of access to the Pfisterei, wine cellar, Kuenburgbastei, and quadrangular weir.
Residents of the federal state of Salzburg are entitled free access to the outdoor area. The castle hosts yearly events, church weddings, and special celebrations. Historical relics from the Salzburg Marionette Theatre, the Imperial and Royal Archduke Rainer Regiment No. 59 infantry Regiment, and the Fortress Museum call home the Salzburg Marionette Museum. Furthermore offering courses is the Salzburg International Summer Academy for Fine Arts.
Schloss Klessheim
Rising in Wals-Siezenheim, Austria, the magnificent Baroque mansion known as Schloss Klessheim is Built in 1700 by eminent Austrian architect Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach, commissioned by none other than Prince-Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun, this architectural masterpiece Originally used since 1993, the palace has been turned into the summer residence of the Salzburg Archbishops. The palace features a great ceremonial hall, a lovely loggia, a Triton Fountain-adorned impressive entrance hall and stairway. Completing the interior stucco work were Paolo d’Allio and Diego Francesco Carlone.
Klessheim Palace’s ownership passed to the Austrian House of Habsburg-Lorraine after Salzburg’s secularisation in 1803. Archduke Ludwig Viktor of Austria decided to settle there permanently in 1866 and finally passed death there in 1919. Salzburg, Austria’s state, bought the palace from the Habsburg successors.
After the Austrian Anschluss in 1938, Adolf Hitler hosted prestigious guests and conferences out of Schloss Klessheim. The American military power seized the castle in May 1945, and the marble Reichsadler sculptures at the entrance portals reminded of the Nazi era. Since the war, the State of Salzburg has owned the castle; since 1993, the Salzburg casino has operated out of there.
Hellbrunn Palace
Found in Morzg, Austria, Hellbrunn Palace highlights early Baroque architectural beauty. Between 1613 and 1619 Prince-Archbishop Markus Sittikus von Hohenems deftly created the design. The castle was meant to be a summer home since the Archbishop would often come back to Salzburg late evenings. The castle is well-known for the water games, sometimes referred to as jeux d’eau, carried out on its grounds. Popular summer tourist attraction are these water games. Markus Sittikus created a collection of clever pranks meant only for amusement of guests.
Among the several striking features of the garden are stone chairs grouped in a circle around a stone dining table. Furthermore there are secret fountains and a special theater built in 1750. The theater has unique appeal since it runs on water and performs music. Currently occupied by the tour guide, the location where the Archbishop once stood or sat is always wet.
Nestled in a large park with a zoo, a stone theater, and a wonderful structure known as the Monatschlössl, or “little month-palace,” the lovely Hellbrunn has been turned into the ethnographic section of the Carolina Augusteum Museum in Salzburg. Inspired by the general popularity of the castle, the Austrian 10 euro Castle of Hellbrunn Coin was issued on April 21, 2004.
Leopoldskron Castle
Nestled in the little Riedenburg area, the magnificent Salzburg palace known as Leopoldskron Palace is from the eighteenth century. It has a great surrounding landscape and a magnificent castle park. Starting with Archbishop Firmian’s building in 1736–1740, the palace boasts a castle chapel and a lovely landscape garden. Legally safeguarded and regarded as one of Austria’s most important garden architectural monuments, this complex
Part of the Leopoldskroner Weiher (LSG 37, 81 ha) landscape protection area, the landscape garden runs southward around the pond. It also fits the buffer zone of the City of Salzburg’s UNESCO World Heritage Site Historic Centre. The royal park now comprises a section of Leopoldskronerstraße running into the adjacent palace grounds.
The castle pond, sometimes known as Leopoldskroner Weiher, is fed water from the Alm Canal. Originally used for troop training, the bathing facility on the north bank soon gained popularity for romantic boat rides in the nineteenth and first half of the twentieth century. After World War II, the pond was temporarily used as a bathing lake; but, in 1960 the Leopoldskron outdoor pool took its place today.
Mirabell Palace
A major cultural and historical site, Mirabell Palace is located in Salzburg, Austria and is included naturally into the UNESCO World Historical Site Historic Center. This construction began in 1606 when Prince-Archbishop Wolf Dietrich Raitenau ordered its building because of his health problems—gout and a past stroke foremost. Based on ideas by Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt, the palace rebuilt in the grand Baroque style from 1721 to 1727.
Over its history, the palace housed several eminent people including Capuchin priest Joachim Haspinger, Archbishop Maximilian Joseph von Tarnóczy, father of Hans Makart, and King Otto of Greece. Purchased by the City of Salzburg in 1866, the palace housed several municipal administration offices following World War II and functioned as the mayor’s residence.
Held in the magnificent Marble Hall of the palace, also a highly sought-after venue for weddings, the “Salzburg Palace Concerts” are Sister of Eva Braun, Gretl Braun married SS-Gruppenführer Hermann Fegelein, Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler’s liaison officer on Hitler’s staff in 1944. Designed by Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach and commissioned by Prince-Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun in 1687, the Mirabellgarten presents a collection of sculptures with mythological themes from 1730. The garden also features four sets of 1690 sculptures produced by gifted Italian artist Ottavio Mosto.
Lasserhof
Salzburg’s Lasserhof, sometimes known as Metzgermayerhof, Hotel Kaiserhof, Rupertihof, Schlosshotel St. Rupert, and the Gwandhaus is a palace housing a restaurant, costume company Gössl, and costume museum.
The Dückher family originally owned the castle; subsequently, the Counts of Martinitz came to own it. Once the Ruperti organization of Knights was founded, the court was assigned to it. The land was reverted to private ownership in 1811; Peter Poschacher was registered as the owner by 1834. Rupert Freiherr von Imhof bought the site in 1867 and built a neo-baroque front.
Originally called Kaiserhof and then Rupertihof, the castle was converted into a hotel in 1952. Gerhard Gössl built a ballroom in still another wing in 2004. December 2018 saw the Gwandhaus sold to Planquadrat, a property developer. On the top level of the old mansion are the Gössl company’s traditional costume shop, home museum, and restaurant.
Neue Residenz
Prince Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau built the New Residence in Salzburg’s old town, also known as Palazzo Nuovo, as an expansion to the Salzburg Residence. Originally intended for the Prince Archbishop’s brothers, the building served as his official residence. Still, a family conflict resulted in a relocation of the building in 1600. The Salzburg Museum, Salzburger Heimatwerk, and Salzburg Glockenspiel now occupy this site.
The New Residence housed the High Salzburg Landscape and functioned as a court building in the second half of the 17th century. Archbishop Colloredo destroyed the armaments in 1786, and the wing was then used for administrative purposes. It was the administrative center for the court camera larar and a municipal building following 1803. Royalty. It provided the headquarters for the Salzburg provincial government in 1850.
Officially acknowledged as a government property beginning in 1890, the New Residence remained such during the First Republic. Bomb raids by US and British air forces devastated the rooms around the southeast corner in 1944. Later on, the structure housed the Salzburg province government’s headquarters. Established in the New Residence in 2007, the Salzburg Museum received 19.1 million euro in overall funding from the state and city of Salzburg.
Salzburg Residenz
For centuries the Prince-Archbishops of Salzburg have resided at the Salzburg Residenz, sometimes known as the Alte Residenz or Old Residence. It is in Salzburg’s Altstadt. Renowned art gallery Residenzgalerie housed in the palace attracts guests from all around. Early mentioned as 1120, the Residenz was built under Archbishop Wolf Dietrich Raitenau between 1587 and 1612. Comprising the grand staircase and the Carabinieri-Saal, which linked the palace to the Franciscan Church, the south wing was completed in the early seventeenth century.
Up to the late eighteenth century, Wolf Dietrich’s successors kept enlarging and enhancing the palace. The façade and interiors changed to reflect Baroque elements and decorations of great paintings by Johann Michael Rottmayr. Emphasizing its sense of power and grandeur, the palace functioned as the archiepiscopal residence and a forum for public events and government operations.
After Salzburg was secularized in 1803, several members of the Austrian imperial family—including Emperor Francis’s widow Caroline Augusta of Bavaria and the Habsburg-Tuscany branch—lived at the Residenz. Established in 1923 in replacement for the prince-archbishops’ art collection, the Residenzgalerie sadly suffered damage during the Napoleonic Wars. Its architecture sought to support a planned art academy and boost travel industry.
Chiemseehof
The Salzburg state government and parliament are housed in the medieval palace known as the Chiemseehof within Kaiviertel in Salzburg. Comprising five buildings, this site is a natural part of Salzburg’s UNESCO World Heritage Historic Center. Arch Bishop of Salzburg, Berhard von Regensberg founded the Diocese of Chiemsee in 1215.
With records going back to 1216, the Chiemseehof boasts a rich legacy. Later on, it turned into a residential area about 1300. Established in 1497 and rebuilt, expanded, and restored in 1694 the court chapel From 1812 until Sigmund Christoph von Zeil and Trauchburg took over as administrator, the Chiemseehof housed the bishops of Chiemsee. From 1866, the Salzburg state parliament and government have sat at the Chiemseehof.
The complex has seen several reconstructions over the years, including the sad destruction of the Kumpfmüller gate in 1873. Bishop Silvester Pfluger created the legislative meeting venue out of a grain storage building. From 1967 to 1977 the Chiemseehof underwent major reconstruction; from 2017 to 2019 it underwent a renovation costing almost 7.4 million euros. February 20, 2019 was the first meeting held at the rebuilt Chiemseehof.
Eagle's Nest
Rising on Germany’s Obersalzberg’s rocky peak known as the Kehlstein, the Kehlsteinhaus is a structure firmly anchored in a turbulent past. Designed during the Nazi era, it served both official and party member social event venue. Though Adolf Hitler only visited the building fourteen times, it is still a potent reminder of a terrible period in history.
The Kehlsteinhaus’s 1937 completion honors not only architectural aspiration but also the human cost involved. While it was under rapid construction to meet a deadline, twelve employees perished. But the finished project was an engineering wonder: a lovely elevator that cut across the mountainside to reach residents to an amazing panoramic view point. Added to the general grandeur were a modern electric kitchen and a tunnel lined in marble.
First greeted at the Kehlsteinhaus in September 1938, Hitler returned on his fiftieth birthday the next year. Fascinatingly, the site was the scene for a diplomatic meeting between the French ambassador André François-Poncet. Currently under management by a non-profit trust, the structure provides dining options both indoors and outdoors for visitors acting as a restaurant.
Accessibility of the Kehlsteinhaus is strictly under control. Due to its dangerous character, the original access road closed to private cars in 1952. Guests may currently walk or bus from the Documentation Center to the site. The official website allows one to arrange formal visits; outside guides are absolutely forbidden from taking part. This behavior reveals a constant alertness against the possibility of elevating Nazism and its supporters.
Though it’s more than just a wide-angle view, the Kehlsteinhaus is surely beautiful. A trip down the basement exposes remnants of the building’s past, which soberly reminds one of its modest beginnings. One such element, a red Italian marble fireplace, is now destroyed thanks to souvenir hunters from World War II.
Franziskischlössl
Built in 1629 by Archbishop Paris von Lodron amid the turbulence of the Thirty Years’ War, the former fortification on Salzburg’s Kapuzinerberg is known as the Franziskischlössl Designed to guard Salzburg and the Kapuzinerberg, the fortifications were They comprise scarped rocks in the north and a well-preserved 3km long fortress wall in the south and east, artillery bastions in the west, The castle served both as a stronghold and a venue for leisure activities during peace. Max Gandolf von Kuenburg expanded the roof and turned gun holes into windows, so improving the castle.
Following 1816, an old soldier leased and lived in the castle in 1848. With few years of war excluded, there has been a consistent inn since then. Though it lacked the stone fountain rim, the historic rainwater cistern, carved out of rock, was kept. The basement is unique because of its gun embrasures, which face the north from huge limestone rock and face. We go into great length on the outer defensive ditch, which faces the large gun bastion d. At H, the moat has been filled in; only a tiny fraction with a bridge still intact remains.
Many people visit the Franziskischlössl during sunny days; it is reachable by following the Basteiweg beside the historic Kapuzinerberg defense wall.
Aigen Castle
Situated in Salzburg’s southern, Aigen Castle is evidence of its rich past and great legacy. The Revertera family has proudly owned this magnificent estate, conserving its grandeur and legacy almost a century ago. Originally designated as “free property” by the cathedral chapter in 1402, the castle has changed hands several times and is not occupied right now. Parts of the painstakingly renovated outbuildings—including the highly praised restaurant “Gasthof Schloss Aigen—are owned by the Revertera family. The Wildbad, a well-liked local recreational area and attraction, stretches out behind the castle complex.
The castle was listed as “free property” in the cathedral chapter in 1402; it changed ownership several times before Levin von Mortaigne bought it in 1614 and transformed it into a grand country estate. It was bought by the Barons of Pranckh in 1647, and finally sold to Johann Josef Graf Kuenburg. The secretary of Kuenberg, Franz Josef Waldherr, bought Aigen Castle and the nearby Wildbad in 1727. This marked the founding of the first large-scale castle park in the Gaisberg woodland region, harmonizing with the surroundings. Inherited marshals Hieronymus GrafLodron and Ernst Fürst Schwarzenberg have kept the lovely gardens and spa expansion of the castle intact.
Since 1921, when Peter Graf Revertera married Ida zu Schwarzenberg, the Revertera family has been in ownership of the castle. Over its existence, the castle has been used by the Hallein School Sisters, the Reich Labor Service, and the Federal Monuments Office among other purposes. The Gasthof Schloss Aigen, which has had several restorations to maintain its state, resides in the old farm buildings north of the manor house.
Emsburg Castle
Located in Salzburg, Austria, the Emsburg—also known as Kreuzhof, Ritterhof, Lambergschloss, or Kloster Emsburg—is an intriguing palace with a rich legacy. credited to the expert work of Johann Sigmund von Mabon, the building of this monument began in 1619 and 1620. It features eight bridges spanning over the Hellbrunnerbach and a mill together with a wonderfully crafted palace garden.
Once Ursula Maria von Mabon married, the Barons of Rehlingen inherited the estate. Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun bought the estate in 1701 intending to present it as a gift to the Order of St. Rupert. The St. Peter monastery inherited the land when the Rupertiorden was disbanded in 1811. The German Reich Forestry Office took look after the castle in 1941.
Starting in 1948, the Hallein School Sisters resided mostly in the castle. The castle has a remarkable foundation covered in terraces and a magnificent double-armed stairway. The stairway links the western facade. Many of the preserved paintings highlight the prestigious knights from bygone times. 2012/13 saw the move of the mother’s house of the Halleiner sisters from Schloss Kahlsperg in Oberalm. Haythem al Wazzan, Salzburg native, owns the Emsburg at the moment.
Emslieb Castle
Built at Salzburg in 1618, Emslieb Castle—also known as Villa Strongfort—was This building’s design reminds one of the Palace Gallio in Gravedona. The Perger family owned the castle first, until 1710. Later, the Freiherren von Grimming took over the property; they kept it from 1713 until 1778. The Bishop of Chiemsee later on bought it. Ernestine Princess Esterházy owned the castle during the years 1797 to 1811. The castle has been greatly altered, so losing its natural appeal.
Along with the pyramid-roofed towers, the modifications affected the rectangular core block—which originally had a hipped roof. The ancient castle’s garden consisted in beds and featured a canal housing rare ducks. Originally filled with whitefish and char, the center circular pond was exquisitely adorned with stone cladding. Still, it has lately become an important habitat for amphibians. Clearly visible in the row of fruit trees still present today, the palace axis, parallel to the Fürstenweg, remains a major feature of the landscape. The castle has seen many important changes that have sadly resulted in loss of its original character.
Frohnburg Castle
Built about 1620, the little Salzburg rural estate known as the Frohnburg was owned by Baron Kuenburg, Baron Froberg, and the Counts of Kuenburg from 1670 until 1960. The Republic of Austria bought the castle in 1960 intending to transform the structures for the Carl Orff Institute. A house then was built for residence. The von Trapp family also lived in the palace in 1965 for the filming The Sound of Music.
The castle features a magnificent baroque garden with two well crafted garden ponds and a central fountain basin that was rebuilt in 2000. Inspired from Giovanni Battista Cavaleri’s Antiquarum statuarum urbis Romae tertius and quartus libro, the wall fountain is especially amazing. Since 2014, the axis of the castle in the Grafenau has seen notable change with the creation of a lovely fruit-tree avenue. To improve the whole Frohnburg castle ensemble, there have been continuous debates on restoring the Eschenbach and replanting the baroque garden.
Castle Anif
A stunning example of Romantic Historicist castle architecture, Anif’s moated castle is located in Anif, Austria. Although historical accounts from 1520 show the presence of a castle called Oberweiher in the area, the exact beginning of this construction is yet unknown. Urbar magistrate Lienhart Praunecker owned the castle, and in 1530 the Archbishop of Salzburg awarded it as a fief. After Johann Ernst Graf von Thun’s restorations in 1693, the property was bought by Chiemsee’s bishops who used it as a retreat until 1806. Sigmund Christoph von Waldburg zu Zeil und Trauchburg designed the castle’s notable English park.
Father Brown filmed at the castle in 1962, The Great Race Around the World in 1965, and The Sound of Music in 1965. It also was used as a film backdrop for The Odessa Files in 1974 and The Prisoner of Zenda in 1979. The castle and its owner, Johannes Moy de Sons, attracted notice in 2001 when a set of its furniture was auctioned at Sotheby’s in Amsterdam. Legal protection preserves Salzburg court gardener Strobl’s creation of the castle park, a major horticultural monument in Austria.
