Schönbrunn Palace (German: Schloss Schönbrunn[ˈʃlɔsʃøːnˈbʁʊn]ⓘ) was the main summer residence of theHabsburg rulers, located inHietzing, the 13th district ofVienna. The nameSchönbrunn (meaning "beautiful spring") has its roots in anartesian well from which water was consumed by the court.
The 1,441-roomBaroque palace is one of the most important architectural, cultural, and historic monuments in the country. The history of the palace and its vast gardens spans over 300 years, reflecting the changing tastes, interests, and aspirations of successive Habsburg monarchs. It has been a major tourist attraction since the mid-1950s.[1]
In 1569,Holy Roman EmperorMaximilian II purchased a largefloodplain of theWien river beneath a hill, situated betweenMeidling andHietzing. The former owner, in 1548, had erected amansion calledKatterburg. The emperor ordered the area to be fenced and putgame there such aspheasants,ducks,deer andboar, in order for it to serve as the court's recreational hunting ground. In a small separate part of the area, "exotic" birds such asturkeys andpeafowl were kept. Fishponds were also excavated.
During the next century, the area was used as a hunting and recreation ground.Eleonora Gonzaga, who loved hunting, spent much time there and was bequeathed the area as her widow's residence after the death of her husband,Ferdinand II. From 1638 to 1643, she added a palace to the Katterburg mansion, while in 1642 came the first mention of the name "Schönbrunn" on an invoice. The origins of the Schönbrunnorangery seem to go back to Eleonora Gonzaga as well. The Schönbrunn Palace in its present form was built and remodelled during the 1740–1750s during the reign of empressMaria Theresa[2] who received the estate as a wedding gift.Franz I commissioned the redecoration of the palace exterior in theneoclassical style as it appears today.
Franz Joseph, the longest-reigningEmperor of Austria, was born at Schönbrunn and spent a great deal of his life there. He died there, at the age of 86, on 21 November 1916. Following the downfall of the Habsburg monarchy in November 1918, the palace became the property of the newly foundedAustrian Republic and was preserved as a museum.
During World War II, the palace was bombed by American warplanes in February 1945.[3] After the war and during theAllied Occupation of Austria (1945–1955), Schönbrunn Palace was requisitioned to provide office space for both the British Delegation to theAllied Commission for Austria, and for the headquarters for the small British Military Garrison present in Vienna. With the reestablishment of the Austrian republic in 1955, the palace once again became a museum. It is still sometimes used for important events such as the meeting between U.S. PresidentJohn F. Kennedy and Soviet premierNikita Khrushchev in 1961.
Since 1992, the palace and gardens have been owned and administered by theSchloss Schönbrunn Kultur-und Betriebsges.m.b.H., a limited-liability company wholly owned by the Republic of Austria. The company conducts preservation and restoration of all palace properties without state subsidies.[4]UNESCO catalogued Schönbrunn Palace on theWorld Heritage List in 1996, together with its gardens, as a remarkableBaroque ensemble and example of synthesis of the arts (Gesamtkunstwerk).
Schloss Katterburg and Gonzaga's palace, 1672
Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach's first design, 1688
Fischer von Erlach's second design, after 1693
Soviet troops in the Schönbrunn Palace gardens, 1945
Neptune Fountain, with Gloriette in the background
Schönbrunn Gardens map.Palace complex with the Gloriette in the foreground and Vienna in the background.
The sculpted garden space between the palace and theNeptune Fountain is called theGreat Parterre. In 1695, Jean Trehet, a disciple ofAndré Le Nôtre, planned theFrench garden.
The complex includes many noteworthy staple luxuries of European palaces of the time, including theTiergarten, anorangerie erected around 1755, and apalm house (replacing, by 1882, around ten earlier and smaller glass houses in the western part of the park).
The area calledMeidlinger Vertiefung (Engl.: depression ofMeidling) to the west of the palace was turned into a play area and drill ground for the children of the Habsburgs in the 19th century. At this time it was common to use parks for the military education of young princes.[5] Whereas the miniature bastion, which was built for this purpose, does not exist anymore, the garden pavilion that was used as shelter still does. It was turned into a café in 1927 and is known asLandtmann's Jausen Station since 2013.[6]
At the outmost western edge, abotanical garden going back to an earlierarboretum was re-arranged in 1828, when theOld Palm House was built.
Gloriette, the Neptune Fountain and Great Parterre.
The garden axis points towards a 60-metre-high (200 ft) hill, which since 1775 has been crowned by theGloriette structure.
Maria Theresa decided theGloriette should be designed to glorify Habsburg power and theJust War (a war that would be carried out of "necessity" and lead to peace), and thereby ordered the builders to recycle "otherwise useless stone" which was left from the near demolition ofSchloss Neugebäude.
Originally known as the Ruin of Carthage, theRoman Ruin is a set offollies that was designed by the architect Johann Ferdinand Hetzendorf von Hohenberg, and erected as an entirely new architectural feature in 1778.
The fashion for picturesque ruin that became widespread with the rise of theRomantic movement soon after the middle of the 18th century symbolized both the decline of once great powers and the preservation of the remains of a heroic past. The Roman Ruin consists of a rectangular pool enclosed by a massive arch with lateral walls, evoking the impression of an ancient edifice slowly crumbling into the ground.
Schönbrunn is Vienna's most popular tourist destination, which has been attended by 3,800,000 visitors in 2017.[7] The whole Schönbrunn complex withTiergarten Schönbrunn,Palmenhaus,Wüstenhaus, theWagenburg, and the Schoenbrunn Palace Concerts accounted for more than five million visitors in 2009.[8]At the official website tickets can be purchased in advance for tours. In addition to tours and tour packages, many classical concerts featuring the music ofMozart and his contemporaries can be enjoyed with the added benefit of more time in the spectacular halls, Orangerie, orSchlosstheater.
Schönbrunn Palace concerts are performed by the Schönbrunn Palace Orchestra, founded in 1997. Chief opera conductor MaestroGuido Mancusi has led the Orchestra since 1998. He also founded the Chamber Opera program as part of the Schönbrunn Palace concert series.
In Vienna, they offer daily concerts at the original location of the world-famous contest between Mozart & Salieri (1786). They have a wealth of experience working with singers and ballet dancers. The Orchestra regularly tours around the world.
The gardens and palace have been the location for many films and television productions including such productions as theSissi trilogy in the 1950s,A Breath of Scandal withSophia Loren, and also briefly in the Bond movieThe Living Daylights when Bond (Timothy Dalton) and Kara are riding through the palace garden; the palace is also seen during the end credits.[9] The comedyThe Great Race was filmed there in 1965. Jackie Chan shot scenes forArmour of God on the grounds. The 2006 television dramaThe Crown Prince starring Max von Thun asCrown Prince Rudolf andKlaus Maria Brandauer as Kaiser Franz-Josef was filmed there.
The Austrian television series,Kommissar Rex has shot several episodes there. In theKuroshitsuji episode 2, "His Butler, Omnipotent", Sebastian Michaelis tells his master that he was a guest at the Schönbrunn Palace soirees before his contract was sealed with Ciel as he teaches the young master how to dance. Dutch violinistAndré Rieu and theJohann Strauss Orchestra, along with theOpera Babes used it as the backdrop for a version of theEuropean Anthem, "Ode to Joy" in 2003.
In the third leg ofThe Amazing Race 4, the palace hosted aFast Forward task where one team had to carry trays of champagne glasses across a ballroom floor of waltzing couples.[10] In the sixth leg ofThe Amazing Race 23, teams had to race through the garden's maze and search for thePit Stop located at theGloriette.[11]
The palace was selected as the main motif of a high value commemorative coin: the Austrian 10-euroThe Palace of Schönbrunn silver coin, minted on 8 October 2003. The obverse shows the central part of the frontage of the palace behind one of the great fountains in the open space.
Official Vienna city map: Schönbrunn—a far better aerial view, zoomable up to <1m resolution. *Click "Orthophoto" and "Draw new map", then zoom in [there seems to be no direct link].
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