''Schloss'' (; pl. ''Schlösser''), formerly written ''Schloß'', is the German term for a building similar to a

château A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking re ...

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 ...

, or

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...

. Related terms appear in several Germanic languages. In the

Scandinavian languages The North Germanic languages make up one of the three branches of the Germanic languages—a sub-family of the Indo-European languages—along with the West Germanic languages and the extinct East Germanic languages. The language group is al ...

, the

cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical effects on both the s ...

word ''slot''/''slott'' is normally used for what in English could be either a palace or a castle (instead of words in rarer use such as ''palats''/''palæ'', ''kastell'', or ''borg''). In Dutch, the word ''slot'' is considered to be more archaic. Nowadays, one commonly uses ''paleis'' or ''kasteel''. But in English, the term does not appear; for instance, in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, this type of structure would be known as a stately home or

country house image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...

. Most ''Schlösser'' were built after the Middle Ages as residences for the nobility, not as true fortresses, although originally, they often were fortified. The usual German term for a true castle is ''Burg'', while that for a fortress is ''Festung'' (sometimes also ''Veste'' or ''Feste''), and typically either ''Palast'' or ''Burg'' for a palace. However, the term ''Schloss'' is still used for many castles, especially those that were adapted as residences after they lost their defensive significance. Many adaptations took into account new tastes arising during the Renaissance and Baroque periods. Like a castle, a ''Schloss'' may be surrounded by a

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. Moats can be dry or filled with water. In some places, moats evolved into more extensive water d ...

; it is then called a ''Wasserschloss'' (

water castle A water castle, sometimes water-castle, is a castle which incorporates a natural or artificial body of water into its defences.Forde-Johnston (1979), p. 163. It can be entirely surrounded by water-filled moats (moated castle) or natural waterbo ...

). Other related structure types include the '' Stadtschloss'' (a city palace), the '' Jagdschloss'' (a hunting lodge), and the '' Lustschloss'' (a pleasure palace or summer residence).

Examples of ''Schlösser''

Although they appeared much earlier than the period defined by this term, medieval

Carolingian The Carolingian dynasty ( ; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charles Martel and his grandson Charlemagne, descendants of the Arnulfing and Pippinid c ...

Kaiserpfalz The term ''Kaiserpfalz'' (, "imperial palace") or ''Königspfalz'' (, "royal palace", from Middle High German ''phal ne'' to Old High German ''phalanza'' from Middle Latin ''palatia'' luralto Latin ''palatium'' "palace") refers to a number o ...

en'' structures are sometimes considered as being ''Schlösser'' in nature. Among those that would qualify are the

Palace of Aachen The Palace of Aachen was a group of buildings with residential, political, and religious purposes chosen by Charlemagne to be the center of power of the Carolingian Empire. The palace was located in the heart of the current city of Aachen, today ...

and the

Imperial Palace of Goslar The Imperial Palace of Goslar () is a historical building complex at the foot of the Rammelsberg hill in the south of the town of Goslar north of the Harz mountains, central Germany. It covers an area of about 340 by 180 metres. The palace grou ...

. ;Gothic * Schloss Albrechtsburg in Meißen, considered to be Germany's oldest ''Schloss'' * Schloss Allner * Schloss Blutenburg in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, a "castle" in English, but a ''Schloss'' in German ;Renaissance * Schloss Glücksburg * Schloss Güstrow *

Schloss Johannisburg Schloss Johannisburg is a schloss in the town of Aschaffenburg, in Franconia, in the state of Bavaria, Germany. It was erected between 1605 and 1614 by the architect for Johann Schweikhard von Kronberg, Prince Bishop of Mainz. Until German m ...

* Schloss Mespelbrunn *

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

;Baroque *

Schloss Belvedere The Belvedere is a historic building complex in Vienna, Austria consisting of two Baroque palaces (the Upper and Lower Belvedere), the Orangery, and the Palace Stables. The buildings are set in a Baroque park landscape in the third district of t ...

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. ...

Schloss Esterhazy ''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 cognat ...

Eisenstadt Eisenstadt (; ; ; or ; ) is the capital city of the Provinces of Austria, Austrian state of Burgenland. With a population of 15,074 (as of 2023), it is the smallest state capital and the 38th-largest city in Austria overall. It lies at the foot o ...

* Schloss Hellbrunn in

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

* Schloss Ludwigsburg * Schloss Ludwigslust * Schloss Mirabell in

Schloss Moritzburg Moritzburg Castle () or Moritzburg Palace is a Baroque architecture, Baroque palace in Moritzburg, Saxony, Moritzburg, in the German state of Saxony, about northwest of the Saxon capital, Dresden. The castle has four round towers and lies on a ...

* Schloss Münster * Schloss Nymphenburg in

* Schloss Pillnitz * Stadtschloss Potsdam * Schloss Rastatt * Schloss Sanssouci * Schloss Schleißheim in Oberschleißheim, a northern suburb of

* Schloss Schönbrunn in

* Schloss Schwetzingen ;Neo-Baroque *

Schloss Linderhof Linderhof Palace () is a schloss in Germany, in southwest Bavaria near the village of Ettal. It is the smallest of the three palaces built by Ludwig II of Bavaria, King Ludwig II of Bavaria and the only one which was actually completed and that h ...

* Schloss Herrenchiemsee ;Neoclassicism * Schloss Charlottenhof * Schloss Glienicke * Schloss Weimar * Schloss Wilhelmshöhe * Schloss Bellevue ;Historicism * Schloss Babelsberg * Schloss Callenberg *

Schloss Drachenburg Schloss Drachenburg or Drachenburg Castle is a private villa styled as a palace and constructed in the late 19th century. It was completed in only two years (1882–84) on the Drachenfels hill in Königswinter, a German town on the east bank of ...

* Schloss Granitz * Schloss Marienburg * Orangerieschloss Potsdam * Schloss Schwerin * Schloss Stolzenfels * Burg Hohenzollern, a "castle" both in English and German, when really a fully-flung ''Schloss'' * Schloss Ringberg in Kreuth,

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

;Cross overs (Relating to places in use for long periods of times, having been extended and perhaps having had renovations in different styles than those of their respective eras – and therefore, displaying at least two and often, multiple styles) * Stadtschloss Berlin * Münchner Residenz * Stadtschloss Darmstadt * Schloss Weilburg

Note

In another context, ''Schloss'' is also the German word for a

lock Lock(s) or Locked may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainme ...

References

External links

* *{{Commonscat-inline, Castles in Germany, ''Schloss'' Buildings and structures by type * Architecture in Germany

Examples of ''Schlösser''

Note

See also

References

External links