Location: 12 km (7.5 mi) East of Bauska Map
Tel. 6396 2197
Open: May, Sep- Oct: 10am- 6pm daily
June- Aug: 10am- 7pm daily
Nov- Apr: 10am- 5pm daily
Park Open:
May- Oct: 10am- 7pm daily
Nov- Apr: 10am- 5pm daily
Rundale Palace is a magnificent Baroque residence
situated 12 km (7.5 mi) East of Bauska in Latvia. Rundale Palace was
erected in two stages between 1736 and 1740 and from 1764 to 1768.
It was designed by a famous Italian born royal architect Francesco
Bartolomeo Rastrelli. It was intended as a summer residence for
Ernst Johann von Biron, Duke the Courland (region of Latvia), an
important figure at the Royal Russian Palace who basically ran
Russian government behind the scenes during reign of Russian Empress
Anna Ioannovna. He lost much of his power in 1740 after a coup
organized by the aristocrats. He moved here after his demise and
devoted his remaining years in quiet rural life. In 1765- 68
sculptures of Berlin Johann Michael Graff were added. Frescoes were
painted by Italian painters Francesco Martini and Carlo Zucchi who
were invited from Saint Petersburg. Large garden that covers over 10
hectares surrounds this impressive residence.
After death of
Biron Catherine II the Great passed the palace to Count Valerian
Zubov, the youngest brother of her last lover Prince Platon Zubov
(aka Platonic Love of the Empress). Zubov died shortly thereafter
and his widow Thekla Walentinowicz married a prominent noble family
of Counts Shuvalov. This family lost possession of the residence
during World War I. In 1920- 1933 Rundale Palace was open as a
school. In 1933- 1941 it was in possession of a State History Museum
of Latvia. Rundale was badly damaged during World War II actions. In
1972 a new reconstruction began turning the palace to its former
glory as a Rundāle Palace Museum. Eastern Wing of Rundale Palace is
partially opened to the tourist.
The Duke of Kurzeme and Zemgale Ernst
Johann Biron bought the Rundāle manor in 1735 for 42,000 dallers.
The old manor house was demolished to replace the current Rundāle
Castle. Construction of the building, designed by Francesco
Bartolomeo Rastrelli, began on May 24, 1736. In 1740, the duke
became a regent of Russia, but was soon overthrown and deported to
Siberia, then to Yaroslavl, as a result of which construction was
halted and resumed only after the duke returned from exile in 1762.
Construction work was completed in 1768. After the death of Duke
Ernest Johann in 1772, the castle was inherited by his widow Benign
Gottlieb, and orchards were established around the castle during her
stay.
After the incorporation of the Duchy of Courland and
Zemgale into the Russian Empire in 1795, the duke's castle and other
property were bought by the state. Catherine II presented it to her
favorite Plato Zubov's younger brother, Major General Valery Zubov,
who had emerged from the crackdown on the Kosciuszko uprising and
took part in the 1796 Russo-Persian War. After Paul I came to power,
Count Zubov fell into cruelty and mostly stayed in Rundāle Castle.
After the assassination of Emperor Paul I in 1801, Count Zubov began
to hold big balls in the castle, for example, 1,200 guests took part
in the Harvest Festival on October 10, 1802. After his death in
1804, the castle was inherited by his brother Plato Zubov, who at
that time had mostly lived in his Joniškis estate. Zubovi remodeled
the castle, added entrance portals to the central building and built
several fireplaces indoors. During the Russo-French War of 1812, the
castle housed the infirmary of Napoleon's Grand Army and buried dead
soldiers in the castle park, for which a monument has now been
erected in the corner of the castle garden. The castle was
demolished - the mirrors were knocked out, the library donated by
Catherine II was destroyed. Plato Zubov settled in the castle only
in 1814. Shortly before his death, Prince Zubov married Tekla
Valentinovich, with whom he settled in Rundāle.
After Zubov's
death in 1822, Tekla inherited the property and married Count Andrei
Shuvalov. From 1864 to 1866, Rundāle Castle was used as their summer
residence by their son, the Governor-General of the Baltics, Pēteris
Šuvalovs, therefore in 1864 hasty and clumsy repairs were carried
out in part of the castle premises. The halls of the eastern
building of the second floor and the rooms of the southern anfilade
were left for representation, but the rooms of the first floor of
the central building were furnished for living. An Orthodox chapel
was erected in the eastern corner of the second floor, in the former
castle library. On the ground floor, under the chapel, a bathroom
with a ceramic pool built into the floor was created. New, luxurious
furniture and works of art were brought to furnish the living
quarters. Count P. Shuvalov ordered the planting of chestnut alleys
in Rundāle carriage yard and along the castle. The ornamental
parterre of the park was transformed into a lawn, spruces were
planted in the corners of the parterre, and a circle of pyramidal
poplars was created around the pool. The old Countess Tekla
Shuvalova lived in the restored Rundāle Castle until her death in
1873. In 1887, repair works were performed on the doorway panels and
parquet. After the death of Peter Shuvalov in 1889, the castle was
taken over by his son Andrejs Shuvalovs (1865-1928), in 1889 the
castle's Golden Hall was restored with ceiling paintings, and in the
White Hall stucco formations, in 1892 the White Hall was restored
parquet and In 1901, the park had some pavilions, a conservatory and
cages for animals, as well as a pyramid made of bullets.
During the First World War and the War of Independence, the castle
was used for the German army and the Bermont army. After the war and
agrarian reform, the administration of the castle was transferred to
the Ministry of Agriculture. A school was established in the castle
premises, but part of the premises was allocated for the
accommodation of war invalids. In 1924, it was included in the list
of national monuments. In 1932, the castle was handed over to the
Ministry of Education and rebuilt to suit the needs of the school.
After the Second World War, there were grain warehouses in the
castle, after their liquidation the school also took over these
premises. The school was located in the castle until 1978.
In
1963, the castle was taken over by the Bauska Local History Museum,
which established its branch there. In 1965 and 1971, the Council of
Ministers of the Latvian SSR decided on the restoration of Rundāle
Castle. In 1972, it became an independent museum and intensive
restoration work began with annual state funding, which lasted until
1992. After that, the restoration and creation of the castle park
took place with the help of targeted donations and grants. The state
grant to the museum in 2006 was 872 thousand lats, in 2007 1 million
330 thousand lats. In addition to the European Union structural
funds for the improvement of tourism infrastructure in Rundāle
Castle 2006-2007. In 2003, 1,342,346 lats of European Regional
Development Fund (ERDF) funding was allocated.
Castle ensemble
Rundāle Castle has two floors
with 138 rooms, 43 of which are planned to restore historical
interiors. The castle is arranged in three buildings, between which
there is a courtyard. In the central part there were the duke's
apartments, in the west wing lived the duchess and other family
members, but in the east wing was reserved for representation. The
castle ensemble also includes stables with a carriage courtyard.
There is a park near the castle. Part of the park is a French garden
with a rose garden in 2005. A canal has been dug around this part of
the park, the castle and the stables. The part of the park behind
the canal is a hunting park formed by a forest.
White House
Rundāle Castle servants' house "White House" is an architectural
monument of national significance, state protection No.6183. "White
House" is one of the buildings of the Rundāle castle complex, which
from the 19th century. At the beginning of the 19th century, the
servants of Rundāle Castle lived. From 1949, the building was owned
by the Rundāle Consumer Association and the Bauska District Consumer
Association, when the "White House" housed a shop and living space.
In 1997, the "White House" became the property of the Ikerts family,
where a guest house is currently established.
The building
was built of clay, which is a typical building material of Zemgale
region buildings.