Augustusburg Palace

The Elector and Archbishop of Cologne built his summer palace at Brühl. The outside is fairly restrained, but inside waits one of the most dazzling staircases of the Rococo, designed by Balthasar Neumann, with marble, stucco and frescoes in every colour.

Clemens August of Wittelsbach, Archbishop and Elector of Cologne, in 1725 had a medieval castle rebuilt as a summer residence. The Westphalian Johann Conrad Schlaun began the work, but in 1728 François de Cuvilliés took over from Munich and gave the palace a more French, elegant character. The staircase was designed by Balthasar Neumann around 1740, and work on the interiors continued until 1768. The Elector was a great builder and also had the small hunting lodge of Falkenlust built in the park.

The staircase is the heart of the palace. The stairs lead from a low entrance in a first flight and then divide into two flights that turn back towards an upper floor with balconies. The walls are clad in stucco marble of various colours, and the stairs are surrounded by sculptures. Above stretches a ceiling with a fresco by Carlo Carlone. The staircase was a stage for the court, where guests could see and be seen. The palace’s other rooms are decorated with panelling, porcelain details and frescoes. The garden is a French parterre garden, later supplemented with a landscape park.

Until 1996 the palace was used for state receptions of the Federal Republic, when Bonn was the capital. Augustusburg and Falkenlust became a World Heritage Site in 1984. The staircase is one of the most famous rooms of the German Rococo and shows how architecture, sculpture and painting were united to impress.

• Rococo
• François de Cuvilliés
• Balthasar Neumann