Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin
Berlin’s largest and most magnificent palace – the Charlottenburg Palace – is located in the Berlin district of Charlottenburg. It is embedded in a beautiful garden. It was named after the first queen in Prussia, Queen Sophie Charlotte, who had the summer palace built. Today the castle with the orangery, the castle park and the ancillary buildings is one of the most beautiful and top sights in Berlin in the city of Berlin after almost 100 years of construction.
table of contents
Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin: Castle for Queen Sophie Charlotte
Art-loving Sophie Charlotte had a summer residence built outside of Berlin at that time. Today the palace, which has been expanded several times in history, bears the name “Schloss Charlottenburg”.
History
In 1695, Sophie Charlotte commissioned the architect Johann Arnold Nering to plan and build a summer residence on the property. This was preceded by the donation of the property by her husband, Elector Friedrich III. The castle was inaugurated as Lietzenburg Castle in 1699.
Sophie Charlotte was considered an art-loving queen and allowed poets, philosophers, musicians and artists to frequent her property. The property was therefore also called “Sophie Charlotte’s Court of the Muses”. Only after the queen’s early death at the age of 36 was the palace and the surrounding area – in memory of the queen – renamed by the king in Charlottenburg.
After the castle was hardly used by Friedrich Wilhelm after the death of Friedrich I, it was only King Friedrich II again who made the castle his residence. He used this until he began in 1744 in Potsdam with the conversion of the city palace to make it his permanent residence. He also had Sanssouci Palace built as a summer residence. The Charlottenburg Palace was then used for family celebrations.
Later, the royal couple Friedrich Wilhelm III lived here. and Luise. The last user was Emperor Friedrich III in 1888.
Charlottenburg Palace: Architecture
Charlottenburg Palace was built in several stages from 1695 to 1791. The builders were Johann Arnold Nering, Eosander von Göthe, Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff and Carl Gotthard Langhans. It was built in the style of the Baroque, Rococo and Classicism.
The originally small garden and pleasure palace was expanded into a representative seat after the elector’s coronation in 1701 as the first king in Prussia. This expansion was carried out by the architect Eosander v. Goethe.
However, it did not get its current form until later. Friedrich Wilhelm II had the palace added by Carl Gotthard Langhans to include a palace theater at the end of the western wing and a small orangery, giving the palace its current form.
In addition to the palace, the 55 hectare Charlottenburg Palace Garden with the Belvedere, the mausoleum and the New Pavilion are part of the building ensemble. The palace garden was laid out as a French baroque garden by Siméon Godeau from 1697.
Address
Spandauer Damm 10
10585 Berlin
Opening hours
November to March: Tuesday to Sunday 10 a.m. to 4.30 p.m.
April to October: Tuesday to Sunday 10 a.m. to 5.30 p.m.
Charlottenburg Palace Tickets & Tours
Adults 12 euros, reduced: 8 euros
Visit the Charlottenburg Palace and experience the perfect setting for the selected program of the Berlin Residence Orchestra and the singing soloists in an exquisite atmosphere. The program features masterpieces from the Baroque and Classical periods.