The Festetics Palace is a

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

palace A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

located in the town of

Keszthely Keszthely (; also known by alternative names) is a Hungarian city of 20,895 inhabitants located on the western shore of Lake Balaton. It is the second largest city by the lake and one of the more important cultural, educational and economic hub ...

, Zala,

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. The building now houses the Helikon Palace Museum. The palace's construction, started by Kristóf

Festetics The House of Festetics (singular, not plural) or Feštetić (in Croatian) is the name of a historic noble family of Hungarian counts and princes which dates back to 15th century. A prominent family during the Austro-Hungarian Empire, they are mostl ...

in 1745, lasted more than a century. During this time, the palace, built at first on the foundations of a ruined castle, was tripled in size in two subsequent building campaigns, most recently in the 1880s, to designs by Viktor Rumpelmayer, living in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. When Rumpelmayer died in 1885, the work was carried to completion by architects

Gusztáv Haas Gusztáv is the Hungarian variant of the given name Gustav and may refer to: * Gusztáv Batthyány (1803–1883), Hungarian nobleman who bred horses in England where he was commonly known as Count Batthyány * Gusztáv Gratz (1875–1946), Hungarian ...

and Miksa Paschkisch. The result is one of the three largest country houses in Hungary.

History

The Counts

were progressive landowners: Kristóf Festetics founded a hospital,

Pál Festetics Pál is a Hungarian masculine given name, the Hungarian version of Paul. It may refer to: * Pál Almásy (1818–1882), Hungarian lawyer and politician * Pál Bedák (born 1985), Hungarian boxer * Pál Benkő (1928–2019), Hungarian-American ches ...

established a school in the town, and in 1797,

Count György Festetics Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

opened an agricultural college, the Georgikon, the first of its kind in Europe, which is still in operation as a faculty of the

University of Pannonia The University of Pannonia ( Hungarian ''Pannon Egyetem'', formerly known as ''Veszprémi Egyetem'') is a university with its main campus in Veszprém, Hungary. It was founded in 1949 and is organized in four faculties: Humanities, Engineering, ...

. The palace's library wing was built by Count György Festetics in 1799–1801, with guidance from

András Fischer András () is a Hungarian masculine given name, the Hungarian form of ''Andrew''. Notable people with the name include: * András Ádám-Stolpa (1921–2010), Hungarian tennis player * András Adorján (1950–2023), Hungarian writer * András Ág ...

of the Vienna Academy. Execution was entrusted to local artisans. The dining room (now a concert hall) has stucco decor by

Mátyás Vathner Mátyás () is a Hungarian given name meaning Matthias. Notable people with the given name Mátyás: * Mátyás Bél, Hungarian scientist * Mátyás Cseszneky, Hungarian magnate and cavalry commander * Mátyás Rákosi, Hungarian communist polit ...

from the town of

Pápa Pápa is a historical town in Veszprém county, Hungary, located close to the northern edge of the Bakony Hills, and noted for its baroque architecture. With its 28,549 inhabitants (2024), it is the cultural, economic and tourism centre of the r ...

. Stonework was executed by the local mason József Zitterbart, locksmithing by a local master craftsman,

József Dobrolán József () is a Hungarian masculine given name. It is the Hungarian name equivalent to Joseph. Notable people bearing this name include: * József Bihari (1901–1981), Hungarian actor * József Bihari (1908–1997), Hungarian linguist * J ...

, tiled stoves by

József Pittermann József () is a Hungarian masculine given name. It is the Hungarian name equivalent to Joseph. Notable people bearing this name include: * József Bihari (1901–1981), Hungarian actor * József Bihari (1908–1997), Hungarian linguist * Jó ...

and inlaid floors and woodwork by master carpenter

János Kerbl János is a masculine Hungarian given name. It originates from the Hebrew name Johanan and is thus a variant of the English name John. People Notable people with the name include: * János Aczél (mathematician) (1924–2020), Hungarian-C ...

, who was also responsible for the fittings in the library. The book collection was made available to students of the Georgikon. In 1815 Dr Richard Bright (namesake of

Bright's Disease Bright's disease is a historical classification of kidney diseases that are described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. It was characterized by swelling and the presence of albumin in the urine. It was frequently accompanied ...

) lived here. The central axis of the garden front is centered on one

pavilion In architecture, ''pavilion'' has several meanings; * It may be a subsidiary building that is either positioned separately or as an attachment to a main building. Often it is associated with pleasure. In palaces and traditional mansions of Asia ...

of the ''

corps de logis In architecture, a ''corps de logis'' () is the principal or main block, or central building of a mansion, country or manor house, castle, or palace. It contains the rooms of principal business, the state apartments and the ceremonial or formal ...

'', rather than on the prominent central tower of the extension built in the 1880s, with prominent

mansard roof A mansard or mansard roof (also called French roof or curb roof) is a multi-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterised by two slopes on each of its sides, with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper, and often punctured by dormer wi ...

s and richly framed

dormer window A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the usable spac ...

s typical of the neo-Baroque

French Second Empire The Second French Empire, officially the French Empire, was the government of France from 1852 to 1870. It was established on 2 December 1852 by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, president of France under the French Second Republic, who proclaimed hi ...

style, and

neo-Renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th-century Revivalism (architecture), architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival architecture, Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival ar ...

woodwork in some of the interiors. On the entrance side facing the town, the axis remains centered on the original baroque structure, now a flanking wing. The elaborate expansion was carried out for Count Tasziló Festetics, who married

Lady Mary Douglas-Hamilton Lady Mary Victoria Douglas-Hamilton, also known as Mary Victoria Hamilton (11 December 185014 May 1922), was a Scottish noblewoman who was the Hereditary Princess of Monaco by marriage to Albert, Hereditary Prince of Monaco. Life Lady Mary was ...

(1850-1922) on 2 June 1880. He entertained

Albert Edward, Prince of Wales Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second child ...

, in October 1885 and again in 1888 during his "incognito" Hungarian visits, accompanied by his great friend the

Duke of Hamilton Duke of Hamilton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in April 1643. It is the senior dukedom in that peerage (except for the Duke of Rothesay, Dukedom of Rothesay held by the sovereign's eldest son), and as such its holder is the pr ...

, the brother-in-law of Festetics. The parterres in which the palace stands were extended in the nineteenth century with a naturalistic landscape park in the English fashion. Prince Tasziló Festetics died in possession of the palace on 4 May 1933, and unlike the surrounding area it was not damaged during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The property continued to belong to the Festetics family until it was nationalized by the Communists in 1949.''Zeitschrift für die Geschichte des Oberrheins'' Vol. 137 (Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 1989), p. 483

Recent history

Since 1974, the palace has housed the independent Helikon Palace Museum; it is visited by 200,000 people each year. The great book collection remaining in the palace is the only substantial aristocratic library now surviving in Hungary. Portraits of the Festetics family, including some in tartans, are also still in the palace. The stable block now houses a collection of coaches and carriages. Open-air concerts are held in the grounds during the summer. From November 2019 until March 2020, the palace was the main filming location for the 'Little Palace' setting of the fantasy Netflix series Shadow and Bone.

Gallery

File:Keszthely, Festetics kastely kapu.jpg, Neo-Baroque garden gateway File:Keszthelyi Festetics-kastélyegyüttes - tó.jpg, View of the garden File:13 Festetics Kastély Keszthely.JPG, Interior of the palace File:Keszthely Festetics Schloss Bibliothe.JPG, View of the library

Notes

External links

*
Helikon Palace Museum - official website
{{Authority control Castles in Hungary Baroque palaces in Hungary Mansions in Hungary Museums in Zala County Historic house museums in Hungary Buildings and structures in Zala County Keszthely