If you are not fully satisfied with the many Prussian palaces of Berlin and Potsdam, you may take a short trip outside Berlin to an enchanting rococo palace in neighboring Brandenburg. In the first half of August, you could combine the gorgeous landscapes on the way with musical experience at the annual festival of chamber opera.
The Rheinsberg Palace is situated in a picturesque landscape of lakes and forests, 60 miles northwest of Berlin, on an island in the eastern part of Lake Grienerick (Grienericksee), a place where nature, architecture and art merge in harmony. The 260 acres palace park is one of a few gardens in Germany where the transition during in the 18th century of their style from rococo to landscape garden can be clearly seen.
At first, a medieval castle was built there. Friedrich Wilhelm the 1st king of Prussia bought it and gave it 1734 as a present to his son, Crown Prince Frederick, who later was crowned as king Friedrich the 2nd (Frederick the Great). The short time which was available to the court architect Georg von Knobelsdorff to complete its construction (1740-1737) contributed to the way the palace and garden around it were designed. Knobelsdorff also planned the Frederick Forum in Berlin (today, Bebel's square). The outline of the palace and its garden served as a prototype of the famous Sanssouci palace in Potsdam..
As Frederick himself put it, he had his "happiest years of his life" at Rheinsberg. 1744 Frederick gave the palace as a gift to his brother Heinrich, who lived there until his last day. During the second half of the 18th century Prince Heinrich unified the garden with the nearby Boberow Park.
Heinrich revamped the palace and garden in classic style, as a home for the muses. In 1790 the palace was set around an impressive obelisk monument in memory of victims of the Seven Years War. The Prince was buried in 1802 in a pyramid-shaped tomb at the palace garden.
In a book called "Travels in the principality of Brandenburg" the German writer and poet of the 19th century, Theodore Fontane, erected a literary monument to Rheinsberg. Another famous German, the liberal Jewish writer and journalist Kurt Tucholsky (1890-1935) described the palace as a "drawing book for lovers".
Every year thousands of tourists who love literature and pastoral landscapes come to see the Rheinsberg Palace, at the northern part of Brandenburg. During the Communist regime of East Germany the site was used as a clinic for diabetics, and the palace was closed to visitors. However, since then, the palace has been once again the Hall of the Muses. The only museum in Germany on Tucholsky and his writings is situated there..
Many works of art adorn the rooms of the palace and invite you to a journey back to the 18th century. Extensive restoration works have been done, in which the original Frederick Age (c. 1760-1740) decorations were restored. The paintings and the other artifacts displayed there, deliver to the visitors the real feelings of the famed owner.
Since 1991 the palace serves as the site of the annual international festival of Chamber Opera.
April to October: Tue-Sun 10-18 (closed Mon). November to March: -Tue-Sun 10-17 (closed Mon).
The ticket includes entrance to the Tucholsky's museum. Like the rest of the Prussian royal palaces, still photos (for personal use only) are allowed to be taken for an additional fee. Do not use Flash.
For staying the night in the nearby town of Rheinsberg, click here.
Arrival from Berlin:
By regional train: Line RB54 L through Oranienburg and Loewenberg / Mark Departure: Lichtenberg or Gesundbrunnen S-Bahn station.
