Tourist attractions in Vienna : Belvedere

The Belvedere is a historical building complex, situated between Rennweg and Schweizergarten, in the 3rd district of Vienna. It consists of two Baroque palaces (the Upper and Lower Belvedere), the Orangery and the Palace Stables. 
 

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This palace complex was built in the 18th century as the summer residence for the important general Prince Eugene of Savoy (1663-1736). The palaces with their extensive gardens are considered to be one of the world’s finest Baroque landmarks.

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Photo by marcella bona

The construction work of the Lower Belvedere lasted from 1712 till 1716. The architect was Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt, who built several buildings for Prince Eugen and was among the most important Austrian baroque architects. The Lower Belvedere served as a residential palace whereas the Upper Belvedere served for representative purposes in particular. Besides this, the Lower Belvedere also held parts of the princes’ collections.

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The construction work on the Upper Belvedere took place between 1717 and 1723. Compared with the Lower Belvedere, the Upper Belvedere is especially luxurious in both dimension and stylistic design. The plan for the construction of the Upper Belvedere in its current form replaced the primary idea of the construction of a gloriette ‘‘with a beautiful view of the city’’. The Upper Belvedere primarily had a representative function at the time of the Prince and served as an imperial painting gallery from the second half of 1770’s. For this purpose, the paintings were brought from the Stallberg to the Upper Belvedere after 1776, where they were accessible to the public. Momentous events have taken place in the Upper Belvedere’s Marble Hall and from here there is a spectacular view of Vienna.

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Photo by barnyz

The Kiss

The Upper Belvedere houses the impressive collection of Austrian art dating from the Middle Ages to the present day. At the heart of the displays of art around 1900 is the world’s largest Gustav Klimt collection. The glittering highlights are Klimt’s golden pictures Kiss and Judith, and masterpieces by Schiele and Kokoschka. Prominent works by the French Impressionists and the outstanding collection of Viennese Biedermeier paintings are further attractions at the Upper Belvedere.

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The garden situated between the Upper and Lower Belvedere is part of this ensemble. It was created by French garden engineer Dominique Girard and is roughly the same today as it was originally.

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The orangery was originally a winter garden for orange trees. Since the ceiling could be removed during seasons, the plants did not need to be brought out, but could rather remain at their place. After the death of Prince Eugen and the relocation of the orangery to Schönbrunn, the ‘‘plant house’’ was renovated and used as stall. After 1918, parts of the Modern Gallery and from 1953 till 2007, the museum of middle age art were both housed in this building.

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The Palace Stables which used to accommodate the personal horses of Prince Eugene, now houses some 150 objects of sacred medieval art, integrating with the Baroque ambience in a compelling fashion. Arranged according to specific themes, the display includes masterpieces of panel painting, sculpture, and Gothic triptychs.

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After the First World War, the Republic of Austria set up the Austrian Gallery in the Belvedere. The palaces suffered considerable damage during World War II. Parts of the Marble Hall in the Upper Belvedere and the Hall of Grotesques in the Lower Belvedere were destroyed by bombs. The “gold cabinet”, situated in the north eastern corner pavilion of the Upper Belvedere, was destroyed in a fire in 1950 and replaced by a copy.

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The most important event in the post-war history is the celebratory signing of the Austrian State treaty on 15. May 1955 in the Marble Hall of the Upper Belvedere, restoring sovereignty to Austria. The Marble hall, which has been preserved in its original form, is the central ceremonial room of the Upper Belvedere and is open to the public.


Text Source: belvedere.at