Northwestern rooms, Schönbrunn Palace

In the western wing of the 1st floor of Schönbrunn Palace, there are the living quarters of Emperor Franz Joseph and Empress Elisabeth from the 19th century. The interiors of the castle not only served as the residence of the imperial family, but were also built for representation purposes and were the scene of countless celebrations and ceremonies that symbolized and strengthened the prestige of the monarchy. For this purpose, many well-known artists and renowned craftsmen were appointed, who furnished the rooms with the highest elegance of the time. The styles range from the Baroque to the Rococo, the Biedermeier and styles of the Wilhelminian era, which, however, on the whole form a harmonious ensemble.

The herringbone room
In the Beletage the so-called herringbone room (right of the Blue Stairs) opens the tour.
The window shows a view of the Great Imperial Court, which belongs to the children's museum "Schönbrunn Palace", where visitors can learn a lot about everyday life at the Kaiserhof and also try out a lot. In the herringbone room are portraits of those Habsburgs who played a key role in the history of Schönbrunn.

The wing adjutant room
In the Schönbrunn Beletage at the latest to the reign of Emperor Franz Joseph directly in front of his apartment a so-called Adjutanten room was furnished, whose equipment could be reconstructed by a photo taken in the 1910s. The aide-de-camp was organizationally not subordinate to the court, but subordinate to the military service and was consulted for the service of the emperor. His main task was to pass on military information directly to the emperor and in this context is probably his accommodation in the immediate vicinity of the monarch to explain.

The Gardezimmer
In this room was the bodyguard of Franz Joseph, who guarded access to the Emperor's apartment. On the right side there is a ceramic stove, which, like all the others in the castle, was heated by a heating corridor (originally made of wood) behind the state rooms, so as not to disturb the imperial family at receptions and in the everyday life and to avoid the generation of dirt. In the 19th century, a hot air heater was installed, which is no longer in operation since 1992.

The billiard room
The billiard room opens the sequence of rooms of the audience and private rooms of Franz Joseph with their original equipment, most of which dates back to the second half of the 19th century. Furnishings, home accessories and memorabilia illustrate the world of the monarch - his professional and private life in the castle.

Several times a week, Emperor Franz Joseph received his government members and senior military personnel.
The pool table dates from the time of Emperor Ferdinand and was already mentioned in the inventory from 1830.

The three large paintings are dedicated to the Maria Theresa Order:
The central painting represents the founding of the Order with the first award of the Order in 1757 to
Field Marshal Joseph Count Daun by Maria Theresa. The two flanking paintings - a banquet in the Great Gallery of
the Schönbrunn Palace and a garden banquet - commemorate the centenary of the founding of the Order.

The walnut room
The walnut room was already equipped around 1765 with the eponymous walnut paneling as an audience room for Joseph II as co-regent of his mother Maria Theresa. The gilded Rocaillé decor, the large mirrors and the original console tables, which were restored on the occasion of the restoration, are typical features of the Rococo, whose elegance reached its heyday under Maria Theresia. One hundred years later, the spacious room was also used by Franz Joseph as an audience room. Here he gave audiences to his generals, ministers and court officials. On Mondays and Thursdays also every subject of the empire could audition with the emperor. Through these audiences, Franz Joseph developed a very remarkable personal memory, which distinguished him until his old age.

Study of Franz Joseph
The writing room of Franz Joseph stands by its simple equipment in complete contrast to the magnificent decor of the audience room. Numerous private pictures and photographs, among them many of the Empress Elisabeth, testify to the dwelling culture of the emperor.

Here Franz Joseph began his working day at five o'clock in the morning, having got up at four o'clock.
As he worked through the numerous files, he was served simple meals on his desk. Thus, the
life of this emperor, who described himself as the first official of his state, played above all at his desk.

The two large portraits show Emperor Franz Joseph at the age of 33 and his wife Elisabeth , also known by their nickname Sisi , at the age of 27 years. Already during their lifetime, their intelligence, their independent spirit, their extravagance and beauty created a myth that continues today. Not understood by the court, Elisabeth suffered increasingly from depression. This condition worsened after the suicide of her son Rudolf in Mayerling.

The Ketterlzimmer
The wallpaper door on the back wall of the study leads into the room of the valet Eugen Ketterl. He was responsible for the physical well-being of Franz Joseph, was always at the Emperor's disposal and served him breakfast and small meals in the study.

Bedroom of Franz Joseph
In the bedroom began the everyday life of the emperor and ran according to a well-defined schedule. At four o'clock, Franz Joseph got up and carried out his morning toilet with cold water before, as a devout Catholic, he performed morning prayers on the Betschemel. The iron bed suggests the austere character and thriftiness of the Emperor. In this bed, Franz Joseph died at the age of 86 in 1916, in the midst of the turmoil of the First World War. At the exit of this room is the imperial English style toilet with mechanical water flushing. It was installed in 1899.


Schönbrunn Palace

Schönbrunn Palace (German: Schloss Schönbrunn) is a former imperial summer residence located in Vienna, Austria. The 1,441-room Baroque palace is one of the most important architectural, cultural, and historical monuments in the country. Since the mid-1950s it has been a major tourist attraction. The history of the palace and its vast gardens spans over 300 years, reflecting the changing tastes, interests, and aspirations of successive Habsburg monarchs.

In 1569, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II purchased a large floodplain of the Wien river beneath a hill, situated between Meidling and Hietzing, where a former owner, in 1548, had erected a mansion called Katterburg. The emperor ordered the area to be fenced and put game there such as pheasants, ducks, deer and boar, in order for it to serve as the court's recreational hunting ground. In a small separate part of the area, "exotic" birds such as turkeys and peafowl were kept. Fishponds were also built.

The name Schönbrunn (meaning "beautiful spring"), has its roots in an artesian well from which water was consumed by the court.

During the next century, the area was used as a hunting and recreation ground. Eleonora Gonzaga, who loved hunting, spent much time there and was bequeathed the area as her widow's residence after the death of her husband, Ferdinand II. From 1638 to 1643, she added a palace to the Katterburg mansion, while in 1642 came the first mention of the name "Schönbrunn" on an invoice. The origins of the Schönbrunn orangery seem to go back to Eleonora Gonzaga as well. The Schönbrunn Palace in its present form was built and remodelled during the 1740–50s during the reign of empress Maria Theresa who received the estate as a wedding gift. Franz I commissioned the redecoration of the palace exterior in the neoclassical style as it appears today.

Franz Joseph, the longest-reigning emperor of Austria, was born at Schönbrunn and spent a great deal of his life there. He died there, at the age of 86, on 21 November 1916. Following the downfall of the Habsburg monarchy in November 1918, the palace became the property of the newly founded Austrian Republic and was preserved as a museum.

After World War II and during the Allied Occupation of Austria (1945—55), Schönbrunn Palace was requisitioned to provide offices for both the British Delegation to the Allied Commission for Austria, and for the headquarters for the small British Military Garrison present in Vienna. With the reestablishment of the Austrian republic in 1955, the palace once again became a museum. It is still sometimes used for important events such as the meeting between U.S. president John F. Kennedy and Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev in 1961.

Since 1992 the palace and gardens have been owned and administered by the Schloss Schönbrunn Kultur-und Betriebsges.m.b.H., a limited-liability company wholly owned by the Republic of Austria. The company conducts preservation and restoration of all palace properties without state subsidies. UNESCO catalogued Schönbrunn Palace on the World Heritage List in 1996, together with its gardens, as a remarkable Baroque ensemble and example of synthesis of the arts (Gesamtkunstwerk).