Discover Colmdorf Palace on Königsallee, which was once a Margrave's country estate and is now privately owned.
A little bit of history …
After the death of Margrave Wilhelmine, Margrave Friedrich purchased the country palace, Colmdorf Palace, built in 1754/55 by the then court building inspector Rudolf Heinrich Richter on behalf of the Margrave Minister Freiherr von Reitzenstein. It first served as a gift and residence for his second wife Sophie Caroline Marie, an educated and attractive princess of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel.
Schloss Colmdorf or Carolinenruhe, as it is also called, experienced numerous different owners and had a correspondingly varied history. From 1901 to 1912, Isolde, the eldest daughter of Richard and Cosima Wagner, and her husband Franz Philipp Beidler lived in the castle on Königsallee, before it finally fell into a dormant sleep for decades.
2021 – Restored in new splendor
Since July 2021, Schloss Colmdorf has been perfectly restored and equipped with original furniture, as well as Schloss Birken, to the public as a baroque castle museum under the direction of the Rothenbücher family. In addition to valuable inventory from the time of the Margrave, guided tours also include the exquisite stucco work by Adam Rudolph Albini, who also designed the stucco work in the Old Castle of the Hermitage and in various Margrave churches.
Guided tours
A public tour of Colmdorf Castle (in German language) takes place every first Sunday of the month at 2 PM (starting in May 2026, there are currently no public tours).
For groups of 6 or more, a guided tour is possible year-round by prior arrangement.
Further information:
Text: Peter Rothenbücher
