Detail from the Ceiling in the
Kaisersaal
Kaisersaal
The Rose Garden Behind the Palace
Designed in 1757
Entrance to the Bavarian State
Library in the Palace
The New
Residence Palace
Die Neue Residenz
The two sides of the Neue
Residenz
that face the cathedral square
The imposing sandstone edifice of the New Residence borders two sides of cathedral square in Bamberg. The Prince Bishops of Bamberg lived and governed here until 1802. Today it houses a state art gallery and a state library. The palace has four wings and was built during two periods. First, the Prince Bishop Johann Philipp von Gebsattel starting in 1602 build two wings in the Renaissance style. Later Prince Bishop Lothar Franz von Schönborn chose Johann Leohnard Dietzenhofer to design Franconia's first full scale baroque palace between 1697 and 1703. The two wings he built and which faced the square a join to older wings at the rear. The impressive exterior, which escaped the ravages of World War II, is surpassed only by the splendor of the interior. In more than forty magnificent rooms, original stucco ceilings and inlaid floors, and some five hundred valuable pieces of furniture dating from the 17th and 18th centuries radiate the authentic atmosphere of a seat of princes.
Prince Bishop and Elector -
Powerful Enough to Influence Who Becomes Emperor
In the German bishoprics, a small and select circle of the aristocratic families competed for the most influential ruling positions. The highest office was that of Prince Bishop, and he was chosen by his peers. There were many constraints on his power he had to serve the Emperor of the holy Roman empire, the pope, the group of noble men who had supported his election, and his family.
Prince Bishop Lothar Franz von Schönborn, who ruled from 1693 to 1729, was one of the most influential ecclesiastical princes of his era. He held three important positions simultaneously: Prince Bishop of Bamberg in Franconia, a bishopric which enjoyed an exceptional status, Prince Bishop of Mainz, and Imperial Chancellor of the Holy Roman Empire, which meant he was also the highest ranking is Elector in the Empire. Electors were those men who had a say in who was chosen as Holy Roman Emperor. Schönborn suceeded in representing an interest group made up of small ecclesiastical states in the Holy Roman Empire, which needed Imperial protection from their surrounding secular neighboring states. Prince Bishop Schoenborn deftly demonstrated to the Emperor that he derived his power from the electors and that therefore he must allow the Electors to participate in the government of the Empire. Schönborn as Imperial Chancellor was in charge of administrating the negotiations that led to the election of the new Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. For Schönborn, the election of Karl VI of Hapsburg in 1711, was the pinnacle of his career. Before the coronation, the new Emperor had to sign an agreement arranged by Schönborn. This agreement limited the Emperor's powers, and increased power of the man called the Electors. This new power arrangement is graphically represented in the ceiling painting of the great reception room called the Kaisersaal.
The Ceiling in the Kaisersaal Showing the Electors New Power
The Kaisersaal
The Kaisersaal (Emperor's Room) had a relatively low ceiling because it was on the first floor. Melchior Steidl, an artist from Tyrol, tried to remedy the effect, when he painted the room in 1707 to 1709. With trompe l'oeil architecture he opened the room upwards to an illusionist view of the heavens. The program begins at the window appears with sixteen larger-than-life portraits of German emperors starting with Heinrich II, who founded the Bamberg diocese in 1007, to Joseph I, since the 1705 the reigning Hapsburg. The ceiling follows with allegories of the four world empires, the diurnal phases and the seasons. The composition is crowned at the center by a timeless allegory of good governance in triumphant procession across the sky. With his room he paid enduring tribute to his close links with the Hapsburg court in Vienna.
Among the most valuable items in the Imperial rooms (Kaiserzimmer) are the French woven hangings from Beauvais, made around 1730. Apart from the Elector's Rooms (Kurfürstenzimmer) and the Prince-Bishop's Chambers (Fürstbischöfliche Wohnräume), the public has access to rooms which recall the exile of King Otto of Greece, a member of the Wittelsbach royal family, who stayed here with his wife Amalie after being forced to leave Athens in 1862.
The Rose Garden
The Rose Garden Designed by
Balthasar Neumann
The Rose Garden, which borders on the residence, is situated on a large
terrace. From here of the visitor can enjoy a fantastic view
of
the town of Bamberg. It is divided into four sections where
the
paths cross at its center, marked by a round fountain pool.
In
the summer months the fragrance and beautiful flowers of around 4,500
rosebushes spread all across the garden. The beautiful
pavilion
designed by Balthasar Neumann and completed in 1757, today accomodates
a café with Bamberg's widest selection of fine cakes.
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The Kaisersaal in the Neue Residenz
Doorway to Cathedral Square
