Esterhazyplatz
Tel. (02682) 63854 12
Open:
Jan- March:
9am- 5pm Fri- Sun
Apr- Oct: 9am- 5pm daily
Nov- Dec 9am- 5pm
Thu- Sun
Esterházy Palace, Esterházyplatz 5. Tel .: +43 (0) 2682
63004-0, E-Mail:
schloss-esterhazy@esterhazy.at
Schloss Esterhazy or Castle Esterhazy is a former residence of Esterhazy aristocratic family. Schloss Esterhazy was erected in 1663- 73 under supervision of Carlo Martino Carlone for Paul I, first Prince of Esterhazy of Galantha. Prince himself explained his love for lavish residence by claiming that he was in fact of the royal blood and even claimed to be a direct descendant of barbarian king Attila. There is no scientific proof, however, that this Hungarian noble family has any connection to the legendary war chief.
On the site of today's chateau there was a Gothic
castle, the origins of which date back to the 13th century. It was owned
by the Gutk family, who owned numerous estates in western Hungary. In
1364 the castle was acquired by the Kanizsay family and extensively
expanded. With permission from the Hungarian King Louis the Great, the
family built a wall around the entire town of Eisenstadt, which enclosed
the castle.
Between 1445 and 1464 the castle and the entire town
came into the possession of the Habsburgs. The castle was initially only
pledged by them, which is why no conversions were made. According to the
reconciliation of Emperor Frederick III with the Hungarian king Mathias
Corvinus, the city returned to the Kingdom of Hungary along with the
entirety of what was then western Hungary (approximately today's
Burgenland).
In 1622 the castle came into the administration of
the Esterházy family as a pawn - as an object of exchange after the
Peace of Nikolsburg, in which Nikolaus Count Esterházy ceded the rule of
Munkács in north-eastern Hungary to Gábor Bethlen. In 1649 Nikolaus' son
Ladislaus bought the castle from Ferdinand III; since then the area has
been in the uninterrupted ownership of the Esterházy. Since the city of
Eisenstadt (within the city walls) was not subject to them, but had
bought the rank of a royal Hungarian free city in 1648, the family
initiated settlement activity a short distance west of the castle (where
the Jewish community settled, among other things).
After the
death of Ladislaus, his brother Paul I had the castle converted into a
baroque palace in the 1650s, which remained the main residence of the
family, which was soon raised to the rank of prince, for 300 years.
Carlo Martino Carlone was commissioned with the planning, stonemason
work was assigned to the masters Hieronymus Bregno, Ambrosius Ferrethi
and the brothers Ambrosius and Giorgio Regondi from Kaisersteinbruch.
The renovation took about ten years. The work that was later necessary
came to a standstill due to the second Turkish siege in 1683.
In
the 18th century the castle was only slightly changed on the outside.
Most of the modifications concerned the interior. Deliveries of hard
stone from Kaisersteinbruch, the "Kaiserstein", were made in 1745/1746
for the stone bridge construction over the castle moat, in 1761 by
master Johann Michael Strickner for the new main staircase. 1790-1794
the opposite stable and guard buildings were built.
At the
beginning of the 19th century (1805-1815), under Nicholas II, Karl
Ehmann converted the building into a classicist palace based on plans by
the architect Charles de Moreau. In the course of this, the moat was
filled in. However, the work had to be stopped due to the occupation of
Eisenstadt by the Napoleonic troops and could no longer be continued due
to the financial burden on the Esterházy from the war against the
French. That is why only the middle part of the princely residence
planned by Moreau, more than twice as large, still exists today. Major
renovations were carried out at the end of the 19th century, but these
did not change much in terms of appearance.
Present
After the Second World War, part of the
Burgenland state government was housed in the castle during the
occupation period. After 1969, parts of the castle were leased from
the state of Burgenland and managed by a state-owned operating
company. This lease, which included extensive renovation and
adaptation work, ended on December 31, 2009, as the state was not
willing to participate financially in the Esterházy Foundation's
ambitious expansion plans.
During the renovation of the
entire roof landscape, which was carried out until 2021, all four
towers, the spiral corridor including chimneys, balustrades,
decorative attachments, onion roofs as well as a sundial and tower
clock were comprehensively renewed in four sections. During the
refurbishment, the use of certain historical plastering techniques
was taken up again and "disappeared" cornices were re-established or
the portals returned to their original, baroque position.
The
palace's historic ballroom is known as the Haydn Hall and is often
used as a concert hall. Joseph Haydn worked from 1761 to 1803 as a
court musician, conductor and composer at the Esterházy princely
court. In addition, he set up works for performances in Esterházy
Palace (Fertöd) and conducted more than 1000 performances as
Kapellmeister. Since 2009, the permanent exhibition "Haydn
explosive", dedicated to this artistic epoch, has been on display in
the Sala Terrena of Eisenstadt Castle.
Since 1986, Esterházy
Palace has also been the seat of the Burgenland Haydn Festival
Association, which took place in the palace from 1989 to 2016. For
2017, the Esterhazy companies announced HERBSTGOLD, an annual
successor festival to the Haydn Festival taking place in September,
which is intended to appeal to young audiences in Eisenstadt with a
mix of jazz, Roma, Balkan and classical music as well as culinary
delights. Esterházy Palace, along with the Orangery in the Palace
Garden, serves as the setting for the HERBSTGOLD Festival. The
musical event also focuses on works by Haydn, Beethoven, Mozart and
Schubert.
In addition to recurring cultural events, Esterházy
Palace also hosts numerous exhibitions run by Esterhazy companies.
The exhibition concept is based on comprehensive permanent
exhibitions as well as additional changing annual exhibitions. The
topics range from the 300-year construction history of the palace,
the way of life of the Esterházy princes and Melinda Esterházy, and
the life story of Josef Haydn. In the basement is the largest wine
museum in Austria, which shows over 700 exhibits, including the
oldest tree press in Burgenland.
Medieval Origins and Early Fortifications (Late 13th–Early 17th
Century)
The site began as a late-13th-century Gothic castle built
for defense, later expanded into a “medieval city castle” under the
Kanizsai family and Hungarian royal oversight. It featured a
circumvallation (defensive wall), moats up to several meters deep with
high retaining walls, and a drawbridge for access. These elements
emphasized fortification over comfort. The Esterházy family acquired the
property around 1622–1649, but major architectural transformation waited
until the second half of the 17th century.
Baroque Transformation
(1663–1672): The Defining Phase
Under Prince Paul I Esterházy, the
castle was almost entirely rebuilt into a Baroque palace between 1663
and 1672. Italian architect Carlo Martino Carlone (from Como) oversaw
the work, though Viennese court architect Filiberto Luchese is sometimes
credited with the overall plan. The project involved demolishing much of
the medieval living quarters and constructing parallel rows of rooms
both outside and inside the old circumvallation, creating a new building
while preserving the core structure.
Key exterior features of
this Baroque phase include:
Towers: The original medieval towers were
encased in narrow new rooms and crowned with distinctive double
onion-shaped domes clad in copper (visible in historical views; some
were later modified). A cellar level was added beneath them.
Facades:
All four sides of the palace (the main roadside façade and the three
courtyard façades) received a uniform, harmonious treatment. A Tuscan
colossal pilaster order articulates the piano nobile (first upper
floor), giving the building a monumental vertical rhythm and visual
unity. At mezzanine level on the main front, a striking row of attached
busts depicts Hungarian military leaders, with central emphasis on the
Palatines Nicholas and Paul Esterházy.
Stucco decoration: Executed by
master stuccoist Andrea Bertinalli from Upper Italy, this includes
elaborate grotesques (fantastical ornamental motifs) beneath the
string-course on the main and courtyard façades, plus additional
grotesques on the socles (bases) of the courtyard pilasters. These
details add playful, sculptural richness typical of High Baroque.
Original coloring: The roadside façade was likely grey, white, and pink;
the courtyard side grey, blue, and white.
Interior architectural
highlights from this era center on the Haydn Hall (Haydnsaal) in the
north wing—the palace’s most celebrated space. Created by removing part
of the old circumvallation, it is a grand, multi-purpose festival and
banquet hall rising through three stories with vertically aligned
windows facing the courtyard. Its architectural drama is heightened by
17th-century frescoes by Carpoforo Tencalla (depicting scenes from
Apuleius’s Metamorphoses, including the marriage of Cupid and Psyche
amid the Olympic gods and the myth of the Golden Apples of the
Hesperides). Grisaille allegorical figures and Esterházy armorial
bearings further enrich the ceiling and walls. Two wooden galleries on
palm-capital columns add structural and visual layering; later
19th-century medallions of Hungarian monarchs and Biedermeier festoons
were added without disrupting the Baroque framework. The hall’s
proportions and acoustics remain legendary and largely unaltered.
In the broader 18th century (High and Late Baroque), changes were
mostly interior-focused: new floors, heating stoves, and stucco ceilings
throughout. The two main staircases were renewed in their present form,
and the princely stables and guard house were added opposite the palace.
Early 19th-Century Neoclassical Aspirations (Under Prince Nikolaus
II)
Around 1803–1809, Prince Nikolaus II commissioned French
architect Charles Moreau (with on-site direction by princely architect
Ehmann) for an ambitious neoclassical overhaul. Plans envisioned
extending the east wing for a theater and opera house, the west for a
picture gallery, and inserting a garden hall (peristyle) between the
north towers supported by Corinthian columns, accessed via a grand
ramped entrance. Park-side towers were partially dismantled and rebuilt
with uniform pavilion roofs to harmonize with the new aesthetic.
However, financial strains from the Napoleonic Wars, inflation, and
other expenditures forced the project’s abandonment; only central
portions (including some Corinthian elements and refined central
sections) were realized, leaving the grand entrance somewhat “orphaned.”
The moats were filled in this period, and a stairway to the palace
square was built, shifting the complex definitively from fortress to
open palace.
The palace’s current yellow façade and red roofs largely
stem from 19th-century work. Later 19th- and 20th-century interventions
were minor, focusing on ceremonial rooms and preservation.
Overall Architectural Significance
Schloss Esterházy exemplifies the
transition from medieval fortification to Baroque Gesamtkunstwerk (total
work of art) and partial neoclassical refinement. Its symmetrical
façades, pilaster articulation, rich stucco ornament, and the soaring
Haydn Hall create a cohesive yet layered experience. The palace’s
scale—still one of Austria’s largest—served as both administrative
center and cultural stage (notably for Joseph Haydn’s orchestra). Though
grander extensions were never completed, the surviving Baroque core with
neoclassical accents retains extraordinary authenticity and visual
harmony.