The capital Rudolstadt

The Heidecksburg

Heidecksburg Castle – correct: Heidecksburg Castle – is a landmark of the city of Rudolstadt in Thuringia. It is a magnificent baroque castle from the second half of the 18th century, built on the site of a 13th century castle. In the following centuries several successor buildings, including castles and palaces, were built as a result of war damage, fires etc.

The history of Heidecksburg

Already in the 13th century a castle of the Count of Orlamünde was situated on the grounds of today’s castle. This was acquired by the Count of Schwarzburg in 1334 and subsequently expanded. But only ten years later, in the course of the Thuringian count’s war, the castle was completely destroyed. Today, there are no visible remains of this “original development” of the site.

After the end of the war, a successor building was erected on the same site, but somewhat offset. This was located between the present centre of the Schlossplatz and the open-air stage. The new building, a relatively simple castle, lasted until 1573, before a devastating fire destroyed most of it. Today it is assumed that the round tower integrated into the royal stables still originates from the second castle.

From the remains left over from the fire, a renaissance castle with three wings was finally built, the size and location of which largely corresponded to the present building. But even this building was almost completely destroyed by fire in 1735. Thus, in 1737, the construction of a new baroque residence castle began, into which only the old guard building, parts of the south wing and the ribbed vault on the ground floor could be integrated. The result was a baroque representative building that lived up to the claim of the Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt family, who were elected princes in 1710.

The attractions of Heidecksburg Castle

Heidecksburg Castle is (and has always been) used for many purposes. The most important parts of the building themselves can be visited, but also the permanent exhibitions and temporary themed exhibitions. Here are some of the most important attractions in detail:

As you can see, Heidecksburg Castle is well worth a visit today. Bring the necessary time with you, because there is a lot to experience! Within the framework of various guided tours and combined offers, everyone can see as much of Schloss Heidecksburg as they like.

The historical old town of Rudolstadt

The Craftsmen’s Yard

A successful combination of historical building substance and contemporary shopping and experience culture in Rudolstadt is the Handwerkerhof in the former Bernhardinerstift.

Here craftsmen from various trades have transformed a ruin into a wonderful ensemble of master craftsmanship. The craftsman’s yard offers a beautiful experience for all senses and is equipped for the disabled.

others highlights:

Thuringia’s farmhouses are particularly popular in the summer months for open-air events of all kinds. The spectrum ranges from concerts with Dixieland and folklore to open-air cinema and summer theatre.

The Rudolstadt town church St. Andreas is a protestant, three-nave late Gothic hall church. It was built between 1463 and 1475 from a 12th century church. From 1634 to 1636 the church was rebuilt again and received an early baroque interior.

The oldest of Thuringia’s still producing porcelain manufactories is the “Aelteste Volkstedt” and was founded as early as 1762. This foundation goes back to Georg Heinrich Macheleid. He unraveled the composition of the right porcelain mass, the “Arkanum”.

The artistic figures from the Aeltesten Volkstedter Porzellanmanufaktur achieve the highest prices in today’s antique trade and are very sought-after and respected by lovers. To this day, the freshness, grace and temperament of the famous lace figures have not been achieved anywhere in the world. To this day, every step in the production process, no matter how small, is performed by hand. Through this elaborate working method each figure receives the guarantee of harmony and perfection in form and colour.

The factory building of the oldest Thuringian porcelain manufactory from the 18th century was rebuilt in 2006/2007 to a “glass porcelain manufactory”. Here in Rudolstadt/Volkstedt, in addition to the “Aeltesten Volkstedt”, the manufactories “Unterweissbacher Werkstätten für Porzellankunst” with the art department “Schwarzburger Werkstätten”, “Scheibe-Alsbach” and “Plaue” found their new home.

Visitors are welcome to take a “look over the shoulder” of the artist to see how the works of art were created. The newly established museum reports on the development of the manufactory on the basis of samples, models, forms and historical documents.

Factory tours

You are very welcome to take part in a guided tour through the “Transparent Porcelain Manufactory” in order to follow the handicraft development of the works of art with a “look over the shoulder” of the artist.

Important notes:

Photographs may be taken during production.
It may NOT be filmed during production, not even with smartphones or other multimedia-capable devices.
Employees may only be photographed if they have agreed to the recording BEFORE.
Parking spaces for cars, buses and mobile homes are available. The guided tour through all departments is barrier-free and takes place on the ground floor.

Dates:

Monday to Saturday and only with agreement under the following telephone numbers:

+49 (0) 36 72 / 48 02 – 0 Central office
+49 (0) 36 72 / 48 02 – 15 Ms Eckert

You can see further offers on the following page: www.die-porzellanmanufakturen.de/werksfuehrungen

This small but fine doll museum can be found on the site of the former anchor works in Rudolstadt. More than 250 boys and girls can be admired here. You will be amazed how lifelike everything seems.

The natural joy of life, the charm and the charm of the up to 95 cm tall dolls will fascinate you. Each individual work of art appears as its own small “personality”.

The Rudolstadt Ringler Doll Museum is a real experience and worth a visit. It opens its gates gladly after advance reservation for visitor groups at 6 persons. Admission is free of charge. To the receipt and the extension of the museum one can leave however gladly a small donation.

Friedrich Schiller felt very comfortable in the nearby Volksstedt. He climbed the Bundsandstein rock above the Saale several times and wrote to Körner in 1788:

“The village lies in a narrow but lovely valley that flows through the Saale, between gently rising mountains. From these I have a very charming view of the city winding at the foot of a mountain.”

Schiller had some ardent admirers. One of them was Kammerrat August Karl Friedrich Werlich. By his personal employment and suggestion the memorial place “Schillershöhe” was created over several years and could be inaugurated on 9 May 1830 solemnly. With the establishment of the “Schillershöhe” much effort and work as well as great sacrifices of enthusiastic people were connected.

Today the “Schillershöhe” is still a place of remembrance for the guests of Rudolstadt but also for the inhabitants and a popular excursion destination at the “Rudolstädter Riviera”.

The Richtersche Villa is located in the Schwarzburger Chaussee. The fairytale-like, large house takes its name from its builder, the factory owner Friedrich Adolf Richter.

Richter established a very important industrial branch in Rudolstadt in the last century. He founded a pharmaceutical company. Under the trademark “Anker” the company also produced and sold sweets, music automatons and toys. The best-known products are the Anker stone boxes, which have been sold all over the world for many decades. Today the Anker Building Sets are experiencing a renaissance due to the resumption of production by the company “Anker Steinbaukasten GmbH”.

The “Ankerfreunde” continue the tradition of creative building with Anker bricks and other forms of play.

The history of the city library is closely connected with the school history in Rudolstadt, as the building was once built as a school.

Count Albrecht decided to build a school building for the growing number of schoolchildren. After Count Albrecht’s death, his son, Count Karl Günther, took over the supervision of the new building. The construction of the new school began in 1609 and was completed in 1611. The school was inaugurated under the name “Carolinum”.

The grammar school was founded in 1664 and was housed in a building that had previously been used as a citizen school. With the time the building could not withstand the growing requirements unfortunately any longer and so 1856 an extension took place at the north side, in order to create 4 further classrooms. To create a meeting room the room of the Prima was enlarged in 1871 and additionally a stage for the choir was created on the east side. However, after almost three hundred years of use, the necessary substance was simply lacking to enable modern teaching. For this reason, the first plans for a new building were made in 1889. This new building of the grammar school was ceremonially handed over in the Weinbergstraße in 1894.

The house at the school square could not be used for any other purpose.

The princes and their books

The history of the library can be traced back to the Reformation period. During this time Count Heinrich XXXII established a book collection in the Court Church, mainly with theological writings. This collection was systematically expanded over the years by the active interest of the Schwarzburg rulers.
Over the years the collection was extended more and more and had several locations. At some point, however, the collection was so large that a building was urgently needed. The efforts to find a suitable building could be completed relatively quickly, as the old grammar school was perfectly suited for this use. In 1896 the school moved in and since then the municipal library of Rudolstadt is located at the school square.
To learn more about the history of today’s city library, you are welcome to visit the library’s website or come and visit in person.

The opening hours are as follows:

Monday 13 o’clock to 18 o’clock
Tuesday 10 o’clock to 16 o’clock
Thursday 13 o’clock to 18 o’clock
Friday 10 o’clock to 16 o’clock
Saturday 9 am to 12 pm

The three-winged city castle in Rudolstadt, Thuringia, was built below Heidecksburg Castle between 1734 and 1741. It was built in the Baroque style. Before the castle was built, an older castle destroyed in 1345 is said to have stood on this site. According to tradition, the remaining round tower was blown up in 1730 in order to be able to build the city palace at this location.

In the architecturally highlighted central wing there is a rococo hall extending over 2 floors. It is decorated with rich wall decorations.

At first the castle served Prince Ludwig Günther (uncle of Prince Johann Friedrich von Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt) as his residence. After the death of his uncle, Ludwig Günther moved to the Heidecksburg as his successor. Since then the palace served as a princely drawing school.

For a time, the building also served as a conference building for the Schwarzburg-Rudolstädter Landtag, museum, ministerial apartment, teacher’s seminar and day nursery. The princely Natualienkabinett, known beyond the borders, was also housed here until 1919.

Today the listed castle is the seat of the Thuringian State Court of Audit.

Visitor information:

Opening hours

April-October: 10-18 o’clock
November-March: 10-17 o’clock

• Closed Monday
• on public holidays also open on Mondays
• New Year’s Eve 10-15 o’clock and New Year’s Day 12-17 o’clock opened
• Ticket office closes 30 minutes before the museum closes

Prices for the exhibition “Rococo en miniature”

clues
* Pupils, trainees, students, social passport holders, civil service and military service performers as well as disabled persons and holders of the Thuringian Wald Card are considered to be entitled to a discount.

Children up to 5 years accompanied by an adult free of charge in all areas

Contact

Thuringian State Museum Heidecksburg
Schlossbezirk 1
07407 Rudolstadt

Phone +49 (0) 3672 42 90—0
Fax +49 (0) 3672 42 90—90
E-Mail museum(at)heidecksburg.de

On 28 August 1722 the starting signal for the Rudolstadt bird shooting was given. Here the visitors were entertained by jugglers, musicians and marksmen. In later years the so-called “travelling people” joined them. Also at this time there should be no lack of culinary delights, balls and fireworks.

Obviously the Rudolstadt bird shooting is also the reason why Rudolstadt has a theatre. Prince Friedrich Karl of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt ordered the construction of a comedy house in 1792. Here, education and culture were to be provided to the citizens for the time of the traditional folk festival. The theatre was opened in 1793. Even Johann Wolfgang von Goethe made guest appearances here with his acting troupe from Weimar and showed the audience, in 1794 and from 1796 to 1803, the latest and most exciting theatre of the time.

The venue of the bird shooting was the Oberanger, next to the theatre, until 1952. In 1953 it took place on the Bleichwiese and became the most popular folk festival in the GDR. The popularity spread after the opening of the border also in the old federal states. In 1996 the Bleichwiese underwent a space enlargement. Since then, a balanced mixture of showmen with nostalgic and modern attractions attracts over half a million visitors every year.
Every year, the largest public festival in Thuringia is brought to the attention of the public through a wide variety of media channels. Even the most renowned showmen from the entire Bund region apply for a stand at the popular traditional fair.

On the bleaching meadow, always in August, life pulsates – with a lot of cordiality and in a nice togetherness without difference of age, person and title. We would be very pleased if you too would visit the Rudolstadt Bird Shooting Festival this year. It is certainly worth a trip!