Biebrich Palace

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Biebrich Palace, one of the most important baroque palaces on the banks of the Rhine. Standing in front of the impressive palace with its red and white facade, it is hard to imagine that this complex was originally designed as a garden house for Prince Georg August.

The history of Biebrich Palace

Prince Georg August acquired a plot of land on the banks of the Rhine in 1696 and had a summer house built there, which he used for day trips. Later he had it converted into a small residential palace and the princess was also given an identical palace 86 metres to the east. Georg August became increasingly fond of his property on the banks of the Rhine and so in 1707 he commissioned the master builder Maximilian von Welch to draw up an overall concept for a palace complex in the Baroque style. The two small palaces (pavilions) were to be connected by galleries and a rotunda in the middle. The Karlsaue in Kassel served him as a model.
Georg August died in 1721 before his "Versaille on the Rhine" was completed. Since the Nassau-Idstein line also died out with him, the principality passed to Prince Karl of Nassau-Usingen. He commissioned Friedrich Joachim Stengel with the completion of the palace as a three-winged complex. In 1744, Karl von Nassau-Usingen moved his residence from Usingen in the Taunus to the Rhine. However, the remaining work on the palace continued until 1750.

The Palace Park

The palace park, through which the Mosbach flows, stretches along the north side of Biebrich Palace. The park, 1200 metres long and 300 metres wide, was originally laid out as a French garden. Maximilian von Welch designed the palace park around 1720 with a regular pattern of paths, framed by orangeries and balustrades.
In 1817 the park was extended to the north and redesigned into an English landscape park by Friedrich Ludwig von Sckell. All that remained of the original layout were the two fountains at the rear of the palace and two avenues.
In the south-western part of the grounds there was originally a pond, the Prinzessinnenweiher. In the middle of this pond a romantic ruin, the Mosburg, was built on a small island. Later, in the course of redesign measures, the Prinzessinnenweiher was filled in again.
Since the 1990s, various species of parrots have settled in the castle park. Especially collared and Alexander parakeets are represented here. The birds, originally from Asia and Africa, have adapted perfectly to the harsher winters on the Rhine and their population continues to grow. Every evening, when they retire to their roosting trees, you can listen to their concerts.

Events and shows

Guided tours of the castle are offered regularly. The history and architecture of the castle are explained in detail and vividly presented.
Every year the traditional Whitsun tournament of the Wiesbadener Reit- und Fahr-Club e.V. takes place in the area of the former Prinzessinenweiher.
Every month the castle park invites you to stroll through the Wiesbaden flea market.
In August artists from various fields invite to the "Poesie im Park - a kind of festival".
Some of the castle's rooms can be rented for your own events, meetings or a romantic wedding ceremony.

Whether for a guided tour of the castle or a stroll through the flea market, a visit to Biebrich Castle with its beautiful, exotic park is definitely worth a visit!