Orangery Palace, Potsdam, Germany

The Orangery Palace (Orangerieschloss) was built by the Romantic on the Throne, Friedrich Wilhelm IV from 1851 to 1864. The architects Friedrich August Stüler and Ludwig Ferdinand Hesse designed it in the style of the Italian Renaissance, after the image of the Villa Medici in Rome and the Uffizi in Florence.

The middle building with its twin towers is the actual castle. This building is joined to the 103 meter long and 16 meter wide Plant Hall, with its almost ceiling-to-floor windows on the south side. In the western hall, the original floor duct heating system is still present and functioning. In the alcoves along the garden side of the castle annex, there are allegorical figures of the months and seasons. In the corner building at the end of the Orangery Hall were the royal apartments and the servants' quarters.

In front of the peristyle Elizabeth, Friedrich Wilhelm IV's wife, had a statue of the king erected in Memoriam after his death in 1861.

Behind the portico, in the middle building, lies the over two-story-tall Raffael Hall. It was based on the Sala Regia in the Vatican. Over a large skylight in the high clouded ceiling, light falls into the Museum Hall. On the red silk covered walls, hang over fifty copies of Renaissance paintings. Friedrich Wilhelm IV inherited the images from his father, Friedrich Wilhelm III, and brought them here together.

The royal apartments were outfitted in the second Rococo style, connected to both sides of the Raffael Hall. They were intended as guest rooms for Tsar Nicholas I and his wife, Alexandra Feodorovna. The Tsarina was the favorite sister of Friedrich Wilhelm IV, Charlotte, who gave up her name along with her homeland when she married.

The gardens were styled after those of the Italian Renaissance by the garden architect, Peter Joseph Lenné. In the west, below the annex, he designed the Paradise Garden in 1843/1844. In it are many exotic flowers and foliage plants. The atrium, a small building in middle of the compound, designed in the ancient style, was built on plans by Ludwig Persius in 1845. The current Botanical Garden, with its systematically arranged planting, is used by the University of Potsdam as a teaching garden.

The Norse and Sicilian Gardens lie to the east. These completely different garden sections were laid out by Lenné between 1857 and 1860. The dark, effective Norse Garden, with its pines, was to have been an element of the planned triumph street. The Sicilian Garden, with its palm tubs, myrtles, laurels, flowers, arcades, and fountains, runs jovially southward.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Paul Marquardt (3 years ago)
This is the spot with the best view of the grounds! It's a walk up the spiral stairs, but worth the effort! We got some great shots from here and thoroughly enjoyed our time here. Some of it was closed due to maintenance, but what we saw was amazing!

Andrea Huerfano Villalba (3 years ago)
Splendid place. The view and its history are simply delicious and enriching. During summer and spring the palaces welcomes tourists and visitors the best

E. G. (3 years ago)
We love this place. The tour guide is great. If you don't speak German, they have separate booklet to let you read. If you have any questions, the lady answered very friendly in English. The ticket price consists of the entrance to roof terrace, where gives you a perfect view to the whole park. We also recommend that you visit a nearby botanic garden. The entrance cost only 2 euros per person. It's very worthy because you see the world's largest water lily there without travelling to South America :-)

Michiel Buitelaar (3 years ago)
Beautiful but largely inaccessible (even if one commits to the annoyingly overorganised approach towards tours). It would be much nicer without the army of well-meaning guards trying to exert control over everything. It is really absolutely beautiful. And very well maintained.

Borka T (3 years ago)
So beautiful place! I didn't know about it eventhoug I live in Potsdam, but when I saw its beauty, I feel in love. Place is breathtaking! I had a feeling that I am on a seaside, Italy. Also, not so many tourists so you can really enjoy nice architecture, nature...must see at least during the summer!

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