Weinheim Castle

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Weinheim Castle from above (2017)
Weinheim Castle, seen from the castle park, on the right in the foreground southern part in the classicist renovation (1780)

The Weinheimer Schloss is a former castle of the princes of the Electoral Palatinate and the current seat of the administration of the city of Weinheim .

history

The Electors Ruprecht III. and later Ludwig III. bought various adjoining properties in Weinheim in 1403 and 1423 in order to use them as a warehouse and sporadic inn. The Electoral Palatinate government occasionally held meetings in these buildings.

In 1509, Elector Ludwig V pledged the palace to the family of Dieter von Handschuhsheim. In 1537 was on the site of Ludwig III. acquired courtyard of the northwest wing built in its current form. 1547 later elector fled Ottheinrich before Pest in Heidelberg his court Weinheim and used the North West Wing as a residence.

After the War of the Palatinate Succession (1688–1697) and the accompanying partial devastation of Heidelberg, the Electoral Palatinate administration (as well as other institutions such as the Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg and the electoral mint and printing works) briefly settled in Weinheim. The elector Johann Wilhelm moved his residence from Düsseldorf to Weinheim in 1698 and planned to have the castle expanded into a monumental palace, but this failed due to disagreements with the local population.

Southern part: Adelshof der Ulner von Dieburg

Alliance coat of arms of the Ulner von Dieburg families with the three-pinned castle and von Dalberg with six lilies, dated 1626

In the 16th century the farm south of Obertor was owned by the Ulner von Dieburg family . In 1725 Franz Pleickard Ulner von Dieburg had the south wing built today. In 1771 the line died out, and the property fell to the von Dalberg family , who then converted the south wing in a classical style as early as 1780. In 1835 the Baron von Venningen lived briefly in the castle with his famous wife Lady Jane Digby ; the French writer Honoré de Balzac visited Weinheim and above all the then already disreputable Lady Jane Digby. In 1837 Countess Auguste Waldner von Freundstein, née von Stumm, second wife of Count Theodor Waldner von Freundstein , acquired the southern part and built the Berckheim family estate for her eldest son Christian from her first marriage with the early deceased Baron Christian von Berckheim . Theodor and his second wife Auguste lived mainly here in the castle in Weinheim and the family was very popular there. One of her regular guests here was Stéphanie de Beauharnais , the widowed Grand Duchess of Baden and the adopted daughter of Emperor Napoleon , who lived in Mannheim .

Neo-Gothic castle tower from 1868

Berckheim Castle

The castle tower and the intermediate structure were built in the neo-Gothic style in 1868 by Baron Christian Friedrich Gustav von Berckheim (1817–1889). This was preceded by the demolition of the cellar wing of the Palatinate Palace. The 39 meter high castle tower, which was modeled on the Blue Tower in Wimpfen , shows neo-Gothic architectural elements. Christian also created the exotic forest that still exists today and is open to the public not far from the palace. The castle is still today characterized by the variety of different architectural styles.

Since 1938 the castle with the adjoining park has been owned by the city, which has housed its administration in the castle buildings. In the southern part of the castle there is a restaurant on the ground floor. This was completely renovated and restored from January to October 2006. An attempt was made to restore the original state. Both the stucco work and the old oak parquet floor, which was hidden under a carpet for years, can be seen again since November 2006.

Web links

Commons : Weinheimer Schloss  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 49 ° 32 ′ 45 ″  N , 8 ° 40 ′ 13 ″  E