kulTours - video sightseeing (Heidelberg)

After the destruction of the bishop's residence in 1689 and following various disputes with the Imperial City of Speyer, Cardinal Damian Hugo, Reichsgraf von Schönborn, who was elected bishop, decided to have a spaciously laid out palace like the Versailles palace built with gardens in Baroque style as his residence in Bruchsal.

The history of the construction of the palace is represented by the court architect Maximilian von Welsch, palace architect Johann Georg Seitz, his successor Michael Ludwig Rohrer, the court architect of Margravine Sibylla Augusta von Baden-Baden (see Palace Favorite in Rastatt), Anselm Franz Freiherr von Ritter zu Grünstein and finally Balthasar Neumann who created the church tower, the Torwachtgebäude, the St. Peterskirche (1742) which was the only church in Bruchsal to survive World War II, and the unique staircase of the Corps de Logis, a masterpiece of the Baroque Era.

Franz Christoph Freiherr von Hutten zu Stolzenfels became the successor to cardinal Damian Hugo, Reichsgraf von Schönborn, and thus bishop of Speyer. During his period in office, the works of the sculptor Joachim Günther and the plaster of Paris artist Johann Michael Feichtmeyer were created. Johannes Zick painted the three spacious representation rooms in magnificent Rococco style.

After bishop count Damian August von Limburg-Stirum who changed some interior rooms in the Louis-Seize style (for example the chamber music room), count Philipp Franz Nepomuk Wilderich von Waldersdorf resided as the fourth and last Prince-Bishop of Speyer in the Bruchsal palace. After ecclesiastical property passed into secular hands in 1803 and during the reign of margravine Amalie von Baden (1803-1832) the splendour of the Bruchsal baroque palace faded.

On 1 March 1945, heavy bomb attacks almost completely destroyed Bruchsal and the palace. In the immediate post-war years, only the most urgent measures were take to preserve the palace. However, from 1964-1975 the rebuilding commenced after the adoption of an overall concept. For example, in the Corps de Logis, the middle part with the sequenced rooms Intrada − Grotte − Gartensaal and Fürstensaal, and the Treppensaal and the Marmorsaal were restored to their historical form. On 28 February 1975, the festive inauguration of the palace was celebrated.

A model of the whole palace premises can be seen in the permanent exhibition "Schloss Bruchsal, gebaut - zerstört - wiedererstanden".
In order to preserve the handicraft techniques which were applied in the building and restoration of the palace and which are part or our cultural heritage, the State Construction Service designed a permanent exhibition offering realistic insights into the work.
The staircase: "When we climb up the stairs from the Intrada (entrance hall) on one of the two arched stairways to the main floor, we have a unique spatial experience which made the great art historian Georg Dehio exclaim: 'The queen of all staircases, not as big als the Würzburg staircase, not as richly decorated as the Brühler staircase, but unparalleled in its brilliant uniqueness and room poetry."
Museum of Mechanical Musical Instruments in the Bruchsal Palace (branch museum of the Badisches Landesmuseum Karlsruhe). In Germany, this is the only museum of its type run by the state. "Since time immemorial, human beings have dreamt of hearing music without having to master an instrument" More than 400 exhibits give a comprehensive overview of the creation and development of self-playing musical instruments. A real dream!"

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