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Rastatt: The Town and its Three Baroque Palaces

by Kathrin_E

Before 1700, Rastatt was no more than a small village of farmers and winemakers. In 1700 the Margrave of Baden-Baden chose the place as his new residence and started building the palace and a new town. The baroque plan still forms the appearance of the town. The palace with its fully furnitured state rooms is the town's main attraction.

There is, however, more to a prince's residence than just the main palace. At least one, often more summer palaces, maisons de plaisance and hunting lodges belong to it, as well as parks, churches and the town. In the case of Rastatt, the summer palace in the countryside, named Favorite, is as well preserved as the main residence. Both are at least in parts originally decorated and furnitured. Then there is the tiny Pagodenburg, the Margravine's tea house on a terrace above the river Murg.

"VT Glühwein Meeting Excursion 2008"

The traditional excursion of the annual VT Karlsruhe Glühwein Meeting in 2008 took us to Rastatt. It included a guided tour on the palace and a visit to the Christmas market. See my Rastatt travelogues for more photos!

Even more pics of the meeting can be found in the personal albums on my homepage.