Belvedere Palace, Vienna – World’s 7th Oldest Museum
Belvedere Palace is a little away from the city centre of Vienna. About 2 kilometres. I discovered this as I walked to the Palace. But, it is close enough for UNESCO to include it into their listing ‘Historic Centre of Vienna.’ Amongst the many reasons mentioned in the UNESCO citation, the most important seems to be Vienna’s influence on town planning in the rest of Europe.
The historic centre comprises the parliament, a few theatres, the town hall, the opera house, a university, a couple of palace complexes, a few churches, and an assortment of period buildings dating back a century or more. In more ways than one, Belvedere Palace seems a jewel in this crown called the Historic Centre of Vienna.
A brief history of Belvedere Palace
In the late 1600s, Prince Eugene of Savoy bought a large piece of land on the main road that leads from Vienna to Hungary. He had just won a series of wars against the Ottoman empire as the commander-in-chief. Vienna was then the Imperial capital and the home to the ruling Habsburg Dynasty. That prompted him to build a palace here.
He commissioned Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt as the principal architect to build a palace. The palace complex comprises the Lower Belvedere, the Upper Belvedere, the Belvedere stables, and an Orangerie. By 1716, Lower Belvedere was ready, while the Upper Belvedere finished in 1723.
The prince died in 1736. Since he had never married and had left no will, the Holy Roman Emperor decreed the prince’s niece Victoria as the heir of the palace. Though she lived here for a few years, she was not interested in continuing to live in Vienna. When she moved back to her hometown, Turin, Empress Maria Theresa gained the estate.
7th Oldest Museum in the World
At first, the empress did not use the Belvedere. But in 1770, the empress hosted a 16,000-guest masked ball here to celebrate her daughter Marie Antoinette’s marriage with Louis XVI. That celebration prompted her to move the Imperial picture gallery to the Upper Belvedere. It transformed the palace into an exhibition venue housing a spectacular collection of paintings.
Besides being the repository of outstanding works of art, the Belvedere Palace itself is a masterpiece of Baroque architecture. The empress opened the Upper Belvedere gallery to the public in 1781, making it the 7th oldest museum in the world. The Lower Belvedere served as the residence of the royal family members fleeing the French Revolution.
Today, the galleries of Upper Belvedere focus on Austrian culture, art, and history; the Lower Belvedere hosts temporary exhibitions; while the Orangerie and palace stables exhibit medieval art. The estate houses the greatest collection of Austrian artist Gustav Klimt, including his most famous work – The Kiss.
Garden Art at the Palace
If the art does not interest you, the structures and its gardens are reason enough to visit the complex. Keep half a day to appreciate the palaces and its gardens. The French garden architect Dominique Girad, who had worked at Versailles, created the gardens here. So, while in Vienna, take time out for these Baroque stunners and some exquisite art on display here.
