Pillnitz Castle and ParkExotic beauty
Elector Augustus the Strong, ruler with his voracious appetite for the female sex, once acquired the castle for his favorite Anna Constantia von Cosel, who immediately began with its Baroque conversion.
When, for “various” reasons, Saxony’s best-known mistress fell out of favor, the Elector himself had the hillside and waterside palaces erected according to plans of the famous architect of the Baroque, Matthaeus Daniel Poeppelmann. The grand castle and park grounds directly situated on the banks of the Elbe river are considered a perfect example of the chinoise style, that has the architecture of the Far East amalgamate with the Baroque style. The best way to approach the pleasure palace with its distinctive pagoda roofs is on an Elbe river steamboat, since also the palace’s former inhabitants prefered the waterway to travelling over land and often indulged in pleasure rides on the Elbe river in fancifully designed gondolas.
The English, Dutch and Chinese gardens on the extensive garden grounds urge the visitor to take a stroll. The Orangery and the Palm-tree Greenhouse that has been reconstructed in old splendor attract those who take a botanical interest to appraise their exotic treasures as does the famous 250-year-old Japanese camellia. This remarkable ornamental tree is so valuable that it has been given a home all on its own.
In the castle itself, the Museum for Crafts and Arts re-opens in spring after the winter break, the Castle Musem shows a permanent exhibition telling of the details in the eventful history of this former royal Saxon summer residence that never wanted to be anything other than a highly noble “pleasure castle” far from all adversities of political everyday life in the residential city of Dresden.
Address
Staatliche Schlösser, Burgen und
Gärten Sachsen
Schlösser und Gärten in Dresden
Geschäftsstelle Schloss und Park Pillnitz
August-Böckstiegel-Straße 2 | D-01326 Dresden
Phone +49 (0) 3 51 26 13-2 60
Fax +49 (0) 3 51 26 13-2 80
pillnitz@schloesserland-sachsen.de
www.schloesser-dresden.de
Disabled access
Limited accessibility
