Elisabethenburg Palace (german: Schloss Elisabethenburg) is a

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

palace located on the northwestern edge of

Meiningen Meiningen () is a town in the southern part of the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in the region of Franconia and has a population of around 25,000 (2021).

in Germany. Until 1918 it was the residence of the

Dukes of Saxe-Meiningen Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranked ...

. The castle now houses the Meininger Museum as well as the

Max Reger Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger (19 March 187311 May 1916) was a German composer, pianist, organist, conductor, and academic teacher. He worked as a concert pianist, as a musical director at the Paulinerkirche, Leipzig, Leipzig University ...

archives, the Thuringian State Archives, the Max Reger music school, the Johannes Brahms concert hall, a restaurant, the tower Cafe, and the ceremonial rooms of the Meinigen City Council and Registry Office.

History

The palace was constructed by Bernard I, the first

Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Saxe-Meiningen (; german: Sachsen-Meiningen ) was one of the Saxon duchies held by the Ernestine duchies, Ernestine line of the House of Wettin, Wettin dynasty, located in the southwest of the present-day Germany, German state of Thuringia. Esta ...

, between 1682 and 1692 on the site of a late-

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

castle built in 1511, part (''Bibrasbau'', after Bishop

Lorenz von Bibra Lorenz von Bibra, Duke in Franconia (1459, Mellrichstadt – 6 February 1519, Würzburg) was Prince-Bishop of the Bishopric of Würzburg from 1495 to 1519. His life paralleled that of Maximilian I (1459–1519), who ruled the Holy Roman ...

) which was incorporated into the north wing of the present building. The new palace had three wings and a central tower which form an "E" shape when seen from above. Later this was interpreted as referring to the name of the Duke's second wife, Elisabeth Eleonore of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, thus giving the palace its current name. The building was remodelled in the 19th century, and a dry moat added. The heavily rustic window surrounds, which now dominate the facade were added in 1845. Originally the windows had simple rectangular shaped frames made of

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

. In 1918 a new Italian marble fountain was added. The interior decorations represent a gamut of architectural styles beginning with the Baroque

frescoes Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...

commissioned by Bernard I through the

Rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

and 19th century

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

styles. The palace and its court orchestra have been associated with many famous musicians, and particularly with

Hans von Bülow Freiherr Hans Guido von Bülow (8 January 1830 – 12 February 1894) was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. As one of the most distinguished conductors of the 19th century, his activity was critical for es ...

, and

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...

, who was a frequent guest there. The music archives hold a large collection of autograph scores, including many of

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

's, as well as a collection of historical instruments. The palace also has a very large court library, which was regularly used by

Friedrich Schiller Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, and philosopher. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller developed a productive, if complicated, friends ...

during his stay in the area.

Burials in the Schlosskirche of the Holy Trinity

Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (Gotha, 10 September 1649 – Meiningen, 27 April 1706) was a duke of Saxe-Meiningen. He was the sixth but third surviving son of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Altenburg and Elisabeth Sophie of Saxe-Altenburg. ...

Marie Hedwig of Hesse-Darmstadt Marie Hedwig of Hesse-Darmstadt (26 November 1647 in Giessen – 19 April 1680 in Ichtershausen) was a landgravine of Hesse-Darmstadt by birth and by marriage Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen. Life She was the youngest daughter of landgrave George ...

Elisabeth Eleonore of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel Elisabeth Eleonore of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (30 September 1658, in Wolfenbüttel – 15 March 1729, in Meiningen) was the eldest daughter of Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and his wife Elisabeth Juliane of Schleswig-Holstein-Sond ...

Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (7 October 1672 – 24 November 1724) was a German ( Saxon) nobleman. Biography He was born in Gotha, the eldest son of Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen, and his first wife, Marie Hedwig of Hesse-Darmst ...

Dorothea Marie of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg Dorothea Marie of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (22 January 1674 – 18 April 1713) was Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen as the first wife of Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen. She was the daughter of Frederick I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg and his ...

Margravine Elisabeth Sophie of Brandenburg (1674–1748) Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the Emp ...

Ernst Ludwig II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Ernst Ludwig II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (Coburg, 8 August 1709 – Meiningen, 24 February 1729), was a duke of Saxe-Meiningen. He was the third but second surviving son of Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen and his first wife, Dorothea ...

* Karl Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen *

Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (16 February 1679 in Ichtershausen – 10 March 1746 in Meiningen), was a duke of Saxe-Meiningen. Life He was the fifth son of Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen and his first wife, Marie Hedwig of ...

Anton Ulrich, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Anton Ulrich, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (Meiningen, 22 October 1687 – Frankfurt, 27 January 1763), was Duke of Saxe-Meiningen from 1746 to 1763. Life Anton Ulrich was born on 22 October 1687 at Meiningen. He was the second but first surviving son ...

References

''The following sources were given:'' * Reissland, I.: ''Das Meininger Schloss Elisabethenburg'', Baugeschichte und bedeutende Innenräume. Meiningen 1988. * Beiträge zum Kolloquium: ''300 Jahre Schloss Elisabethenburg'', Edited by Verona Gerasch. Meiningen 1992 (Südthüringer Forschungen 27). * Erck, A.; Schneider, H.: ''Schloss Elisabethenburg in Meiningen'', in: ''Residenz-Schlösser in Thüringen. Kulturhistorische Porträts.'' Edited by R. Jacobsen and H. Bärnighausen. Bucha bei Jena 1998, pp. 91

External links

Museums of Meiningen
(in German)
Schloss Elisabethenburg
on the municipal website of Meiningen (in German)

on the website ''Schatzkammer Thüringen'' of the ' (in German) {{Authority control Castles in Thuringia Landmarks in Germany Museums in Thuringia Historic house museums in Germany Music museums in Germany Literary museums in Germany Meiningen Buildings and structures in Schmalkalden-Meiningen Burial sites of the House of Saxe-Meiningen

History

Burials in the Schlosskirche of the Holy Trinity

See also

References

External links