![Salzburg Residenzplatz 2008](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Salzburg_Residenzplatz_2008.jpg)
The Salzburg Residenz, also known as the Alte Residenz or Old Residence, is a palace located at Domplatz and ''
Residenzplatz
''Residenzplatz'' is a large, stately square in the historic centre (''Altstadt'') of Salzburg in Austria. Originally named ''Hauptplatz'', it is now named after the ''Alte Residenz
The Salzburg Residenz, also known as the Alte Residenz or Old R ...
'' in the historic centre (''
Altstadt
''Altstadt'' is the German language word for "old town", and generally refers to the historical town or city centre within the old town or city wall, in contrast to younger suburbs outside. '' Neustadt'' (new town), the logical opposite of ''Alt ...
'') of
Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the ...
, Austria. First mentioned about 1120, for centuries the
Prince-Archbishops of Salzburg
The Prince-Archbishopric of Salzburg (german: Fürsterzbistum Salzburg; Erzstift Salzburg; Erzbistum Salzburg) was an ecclesiastical principality and state of the Holy Roman Empire. It comprised the secular territory ruled by the archbishops of ...
resided at the Residenz and used the palace to present and represent their political status.
Today the Salzburg Residenz palace houses an art gallery, known as the ''
Residenzgalerie
The Residenzgalerie is an art gallery in the Alte Residenz, Salzburg, Austria. Its collection includes works by Rembrandt, Carel Fabritius, Carlo Saraceni and Hieronymus Francken II.
History
The state-owned Residenzgalerie provides a cross-se ...
'', and is one of the most impressive attractions in the city.
The Residenz should not be confused with the nearby ' or New Residence, which is situated on the opposite side of ''Residenzplatz'' and houses the
Salzburg Museum
Housed in the ' (to which it moved in 2005), the Salzburg Museum is the museum of artistic and cultural history of the city and region of Salzburg, Austria. It originated as the Provincialmuseum and was also previously known as the Museum Carolino- ...
.
History
The earliest recorded reference to the bishop's palace was in a document dated around 1120. Construction began under Archbishop
Conrad I, when he relocated his residence from
St Peter's Abbey to its present site close to
Salzburg Cathedral
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.
In the sixteenth century, several changes and additions to the structure were made. The bishop's palace took on its present
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
appearance under the auspices of Archbishop
Wolf Dietrich Raitenau
Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau (26 March 1559 – 16 January 1617) was Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg from 1587 to 1612.
Life
Raitenau was born at Hofen Castle in Lochau, near Bregenz in Further Austria, the son of the Habsburg colonel Hans Werne ...
between 1587 and 1612,
probably according to plans designed by the Italian architect
Vincenzo Scamozzi
Vincenzo Scamozzi (2 September 1548 – 7 August 1616) was an Italian architect and a writer on architecture, active mainly in Vicenza and Republic of Venice area in the second half of the 16th century. He was perhaps the most important figure th ...
. In the early seventeenth century, work began on the south wing, which included the addition of the large staircase and the ''Carabinieri-Saal'', a section that connected the palace to the
Franciscan Church and a large courtyard.
The successors of Wolf Dietrich continued to expand and refine the palace through to the end of the eighteenth century. The Residenzplatz façade as well as the interiors were altered with
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 ...
elements designed by
Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt
Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt (14 November 1668 – 16 November 1745) was an Austrian baroque architect and military engineer who designed stately buildings and churches and whose work had a profound influence on the architecture of the Habsburg E ...
and paintings by
Johann Michael Rottmayr
Johann Michael Rottmayr (11 December 1656 – 25 October 1730) was an Austrian painter.
Biography
Rottmayr was born in Laufen an der Salzach, Bavaria. Along with his Laufen-born contemporary, Hans Adam Weissenkircher, he received his edu ...
. Throughout the centuries up to the rule of the last prince-archbishop
Hieronymus von Colloredo
Hieronymus Joseph Franz de Paula Graf Colloredo von Wallsee und Melz (Jérôme Joseph Franz de Paula, Count of Colloredo-Wallsee and Mels; ) was Prince-Bishop of Gurk from 1761 to 1772 and Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg from 1772 until 1803, wh ...
(1772–1803), the palace served as archiepiscopal residence, as well as a place of public gatherings and state affairs, all taking place in a setting that reflected power and grandeur.
Upon Salzburg's
secularisation
In sociology, secularization (or secularisation) is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions. The ''secularization thesis'' expresses the ...
in 1803, the Residenz building served as a domicile of the
Austrian
Austrian may refer to:
* Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent
** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law
* Austrian German dialect
* Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...
imperial dynasty, as for Emperor
Francis
Francis may refer to:
People
*Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State and Bishop of Rome
*Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
*Francis (surname)
Places
* Rural M ...
' widow
Caroline Augusta of Bavaria
Princess Caroline Augusta of Bavaria (german: Karoline Auguste; Mannheim, 8 February 1792 – 9 February 1873 in Vienna) was Empress of Austria by marriage to Francis I of Austria. She was a daughter of King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria and P ...
, and of the
Habsburg-Tuscany
The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
branch. After World War I, a plan to assemble an art gallery was proposed by the Residenzmuseum. Planning for the
Residenzgalerie
The Residenzgalerie is an art gallery in the Alte Residenz, Salzburg, Austria. Its collection includes works by Rembrandt, Carel Fabritius, Carlo Saraceni and Hieronymus Francken II.
History
The state-owned Residenzgalerie provides a cross-se ...
was completed in 1922 by the official curator of Salzburg, Eduard Hütte.
In 1923, the Residenzgalerie was opened, intended to replace the art collection of the prince-archbishops, which had been lost during the Napoleonic wars in the early nineteenth century.
It was also intended to support a planned academy of art, as well as promote tourism.
Today, the Residenzgalerie presents notable paintings from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century, as well as Austrian paintings from the nineteenth century.
Wallistrakt
![Salzburg Residenz 10](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/db/Salzburg_Residenz_10.jpg)
The wing of the Salzburg Residenz called ''Wallistrakt'' is a part of its vast complex. It is a composition of various architectural components built during different construction stages. The apartment in the Wallistrakt has not been dealt with as a part of the prince-archiepiscopal residence in literature, due to several re-constructions and changes of proprietors.
The so-called ''Hofbogengebäude'' that was built during the first constructional stage, starting in 1604, was originally a place of accommodation for the apartment of Archbishop Wolf Dietrich Raitenau. It was put up in the medieval ''Frohnhof'', the forecourt of the cathedral, where there was enough space to quickly build a new living unit for the prince archbishop without disturbing the procedures of the Residence or having to redeem civic houses. After the Hofbogengebäude was completed in 1606, the medieval Residence was open to further renovation and modernization.
To the north, the Hofbogengebäude was connected directly to the hall called ''Carabinieri-Saal'', the sala grande of the Salzburg Residence. From there, the apartment on the second floor extended southwards to where the prince archbishop's private chambers were located in the very south of the building. A richly stuccoed staircase led from there to a garden hall, opening towards the garden called „Hofgärtl“ that was located in the west. This giardino segreto was surrounded by a high garden wall. The assignment to the hall as sala terrena, which today is not legible any more.
In literature, a connection between the Hofbogengebäude and the Venetian architect Vincenzo Scamozzi is repeatedly established. Scamozzi demonstrably stayed in Salzburg during 1603/1604 to draw up a project for Wolf Dietrich of Raitenau, including a new cathedral as well as the renovation and extension of the episcopal residence. Regardless, the five passages planned for the Hofbogengebäude could unmistakably be put in context with Scarmozzi's draft of the cathedral. However, there must have been a change of plan (or planner) during the building phase between 1604 and 1606, as it shows in the modification of the original sketch of the facade.
Already during under the tenure of
Mark Sittich of Hohenems (1612–1619), Wolf Dietrich's successor, the Hofgärtl and the sala terrena must have been conveyed. At that time, trilateral cloisters with a storey on top were erected within the garden walls, and the sala terrena was walled in.
Gallery
File:Salzburg Residenz 1.jpg, ''Carabinieri-Saal''
File:Salzburg Residenz 9.jpg, ''Audienz-Saal''
File:Salzburg Residenz 7.jpg, ''Ante Camera''
File:Salzburg Residenz 2.jpg, ''Ritter-Saal''
File:Salzburg Residenz 4.jpg, ''Konferenz-Saal''
References
External links
Residenzgalerie
{{Authority control
Palaces in Salzburg
Episcopal palaces
Tourist attractions in Salzburg
Museums in Salzburg (state)
Historic house museums in Austria
Establishments in the Prince-Archbishopric of Salzburg