Schloss Donaueschingen

Schloss Donaueschingen stands in the town of Donaueschingen in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is a princely residence built in French Baroque Revival style and has been the home of the Fürstenberg family for centuries. The palace sits beside a large park where the source of the Danube rises in the north-west corner. The family still owns and occupies the building today. A smaller predecessor stood on the same site in the 16th century, though it was never finished. By the early 18th century the Fürstenberg lands were united into one principality and Donaueschingen became its capital. The palace is worth visiting for its layered history and surviving architecture. In 1723 Prince Joseph Wilhelm Ernst chose Donaueschingen as his seat but scaled back grand plans after marrying in Prague. His son Joseph Wenzel turned the modest building into a lively court with a new park, chapel and theatre in the 1770s. A fire in 1821 destroyed the west wing, after which architect Friedrich Weinbrenner added a neoclassical ballroom. In the 1890s Charles Egon IV remodelled the palace in Belle Époque style, adding a grand staircase, dome and imperial busts. Visitors find a stately residence surrounded by landscaped gardens. Inside, the grand staircase leads to Louis XV-style apartments and the neoclassical ballroom remains from the rebuilding after the fire. Outside, the Baroque Revival façade faces a park that contains the Danube’s spring. The coat of arms and Roman busts sit above the main entrance, marking the Fürstenberg family’s long connection to the place. Guided tours let guests walk through rooms shaped by three centuries of princely life.