Einsiedel Palace () was a

Rococo Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...

schloss ''Schloss'' (; pl. ''Schlösser''), formerly written ''Schloß'', is the German term for a building similar to a château, palace, or manor house. Related terms appear in several Germanic languages. In the Scandinavian languages, the cogn ...

'' and hunting retreat commissioned by Charles Eugene, Duke of Württemberg. It was constructed between 1767 and 1772. Around 1804, the palace was demolished. It was located at the edge of the

Schönbuch Schönbuch (; ) is an almost completely wooded area southwest of Stuttgart and part of the Southern German Escarpment Landscape (German language, German: ''südwestdeutsches Schichtstufenland''). In 1972, the central zone of Schönbuch became the ...

forest, north of the village of Kirchentellinsfurt, near

Tübingen Tübingen (; ) is a traditional college town, university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer (Neckar), Ammer rivers. about one in ...

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

History

As of the second half of the 15th century, the Einsiedel estate was owned by the

House of Württemberg The House of Württemberg is an uradel, ancient German nobility, German dynasty and former royal family of the Kingdom of Württemberg. History County The House probably originated in the vicinity of the Salian dynasty. Around 1080 the ancestors ...

. Count Eberhard V (Eberhard im Bart, 1445–1496), later the first Duke of

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Province of Hohenzollern, Hohenzollern, two other histo ...

, and founder of the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (; ), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The University of Tübingen is one of eleven German Excellenc ...

, established a

stud farm A stud farm or stud in animal husbandry is an establishment for selective breeding of livestock. The word "stud (animal), stud" comes from the Old English ''stod'' meaning "herd of horses, place where horses are kept for breeding". Historically, ...

in Einsiedel around 1460. The location at the edge of the forest was also suitable for a hunting lodge, which was constructed in 1480. Einsiedel fell into a deep sleep until the second half of the 18th century. Charles Eugene (1728–1793) had become the duke of Württemberg. His reign was marked by economic difficulty, political strife and extravagance. He was a great lover of architecture, and (re)constructed many palaces in and near

Ludwigsburg Ludwigsburg (; Swabian German, Swabian: ''Ludisburg'') is a Cities of Germany, city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about north of Stuttgart city centre, near the river Neckar. It is the largest and primary city of the Ludwigsburg (district), Lu ...

and

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

. Around 1750, he ordered the construction of new buildings for the stud farm. Construction of the palace started around 1767. The exterior was ready after two years, and the interior was finished in 1772. Contrary to the main residence, the pleasure palaces were constructed in a

half-timbered Timber framing () and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy Beam (structure), timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and Woodworking joints, joined timbers with joints secure ...

fashion. This enabled rapid construction and saved costs, which was a welcome argument, as duke Charles Eugene constructed many palaces. Einsiedel palace consisted of one main story, with a mansard floor above. The ducal apartments were on the west side of the palace. Little is known how the interior looked like. Already during his reign, duke Charles Eugene lost interest in Einsiedel palace. In 1790, a visitor noted ‘It is somewhat furnished but uninhabited, and hasn't been visited by his Serene Highness, who often used to stay here for hunting, for a long time.’ In 1804, duke

Frederick I of Württemberg Frederick I (Frederick William Charles, ; 6 November 1754 – 30 October 1816) was the ruler of Württemberg from 1797 to his death. He was the last Duke of Württemberg from 1797 to 1803, then the first and only Elector of Württemberg from ...

(1754–1816), later the first king of

, decided to demolish the Einsiedel palace. Today, nothing remains of the palace. One can only recognize the star-shaped avenues, which were laid around the palace. Also, one wing remains of the medieval hunting lodge, which as from 1964 serves as a catholic youth facility centre (). The estate is still owned by the ducal house of Württemberg, and is used for agricultural purposes.

References

Literature

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External links

* * {{coord missing, Baden-Württemberg Buildings and structures demolished in 1806 Buildings and structures in Tübingen (district) Demolished buildings and structures in Germany Former palaces in Germany Houses completed in 1772 Palaces in Baden-Württemberg Rococo architecture in Germany Royal residences in Baden-Württemberg

History

See also: Other palaces owned and (re)constructed by duke Charles Eugene

References

Literature

External links