The former Imperial Palace (Kaiserpfalz) in Kaiserslautern was built in around 1152 by Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa. The only remaining parts of the Imperial Palace are a few carved blocks of red sandstone and remnants of the stone outer wall of the double chapel added by Frederick II.

Following the excavation of the rest of the Imperial Palace and the evaluation of the findings, the city mounted the historic foundations. The Domus (imperial building) originally measured 25 by 19 meters and was 19 meters high. In order to get a real sense of the size of the building, a 3D steel and tamped concrete construction that imitates the size and shape of the Imperial Palace was built.

You can see the remains of the castle wall, which have now been fully uncovered, just next to what was the Imperial Palace. The Stapf fortress was also rebuilt in this location. The fortress was erected at the beginning of the Thirty Years’ War, in around 1619/1620, by fortress builder Adam Stapf on the orders of the widow of Frederick IV, Elector Palatine of the Rhine. Stapf built primary defensive walls with trenches, bastions and curtain walls which protected the medieval castle and city walls.

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Details

Founded: 1152
Category: Miscellaneous historic sites in Germany
Historical period: Hohenstaufen Dynasty (Germany)

More Information

www.kaiserslautern.de

Rating

4/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

ACE (16 months ago)
Lol , u wanna get drunk or high ? Dont come to this place, police always gonna ruin ur day .
Danielle Cummings (2 years ago)
Took a guided tour through the imperial palace and subterranean tunnels today on a warm October 2022 weekday afternoon with a friend and our four combined children ages six, five, three, two years. We had seen the tour dates on the Kaiserslautern tourist information website, emailed them asking to register, and heard back the next day with confirmation though I was unsure of where we were to meet our tour guide. We parked at Parkplatz Meuthstraße and I wore the toddler and all the other children walked - it is only about two or three blocks (of busy downtown streets) from the tourist information as well as the actual tour location to this parking lot, and though it is paid parking, it is large, paved, and easy to pay for with coins or your phone. We walked to this Maps location (die barbarossaburg) and found the ruin, much of which can be seen publicly from outside a fence, with very little accessibility to explore. Even after walking around the entire ruin, I still had no idea where to meet our tour guide, so we called and discovered we were to go to the tourist information at Fruchthallstraße 14, where we purchased our tour tickets (free for children under six) from a very nice German and English-speaking gentleman, then were directed to go back to the ruins but to meet at the back of the building. I knew that the tour would be in German, but our guide was very considerate and offered us plenty of information in English as well. He was incredibly kind to our kids and those of the other visitors. The tour took almost 2 hours but was very interesting throughout, leading us through the upper portion of the remaining palace, then down through the tunnels that have served as burial ground, prison, and cellar. There were one set of bathrooms during the first half of the tour, though we had to catch up as there was no scheduled break for that. Overall this was a wonderfully spent couple of hours, even with small children. if you don’t live in the immediate area, I suggest making a day of it and going to the Japanese gardens and/or Mr. Liam for sushi, as both are very close and fantastic.
Anton (2 years ago)
I Love ❤️ Kaiserslautern. Very good tourist attraction. Around 1152-58, Emperor Barbarossa erected a mighty new hilltop castle above the Lauter in the village of Lautern, which he called "Honey's House". The imperial palace was used by many Roman-German rulers. At that time, Lautern was still a settlement in the swamp, covered with many small ponds, called "Wooge" in Lautern. Barbarossa's work brought Lautern the title "Barbasossastadt" and the new name Kaiserslautern.
Nick Rivera (2 years ago)
Beautiful and historical. I hope the research and restoration continues
Dragon Ambridge Adams (5 years ago)
After years of construction and restoration, just a dull negative space. Maybe finished in another ten years. Typical Kaiserslautern, unfortunately. The designer of the iron-work should stick to designing car parks.
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