Schloss Mönchhof Siebleben

Schloss Mönchhof is a Baroque palace complex in Siebleben near Gotha, Thuringia. It stands on the Salzgitter Street and is protected as a historic monument. The site began in the 12th century as a monastic farm for the Benedictine abbey at Reinhardsbrunn. Siebleben served as one of the four ducal court districts where land courts were held in the 12th century. After the abbey was destroyed in the Peasants’ War of 1525, the monks fled to Gotha. The present Baroque palace was built in 1729 by Adolph Christian Avemann, chancellor of Friedenstein Castle. His son Ernst Ludwig Avemann died here in 1689. In 1799 Duke Ernst II bought the property for his son August as a wedding gift and summer residence. The more than ten-hectare park was redesigned as an English landscape garden with tree groups, avenues and ponds. The garden architect Johann Rudolph Eyserbeck planned the layout, and the park was enclosed by a sandstone wall with two gates. Notable guests included the landscape painter Louis Gurlitt. Today the palace serves as a block of flats and holiday homes. The two castle ponds and the Mönchpark are open to visitors as a local recreation area. The garden has been restored to its Baroque appearance on 1.8 hectares, including the garden wall and part of a vaulted cellar. Remains of older foundations were uncovered during building work in 2015. North of the palace a modern housing estate was built, which intrudes on the historic setting.