Dornburg palaces (Dornburger Schloesser)

The architectural ensemble of the three palaces in the city of Dornburg. All three buildings are located in a line at the top of a hill and are built in different styles.


The palaces are very different and therefore this place will be interesting to any tourist. In addition, they located in a very picturesque place.


Access to the park around the palaces is free from 9 am until sunset.


In the morning and in the evening we were the only tourists, except the cat.


In the years 1485-1522 the Old Castle was built. It stands on the site of a royal fortress, which was destroyed during the local Saxon wars. Participated in the battles of the Thirty Years War (1618 - 1648). There was a pension and a nursing home in the castle from the beginning of the 20th century. Since 2004 it belongs to the University of Jena.






In 1539 - 1546 a local nobleman built a Renaissance-style palace nearby. In 1571 a nobleman went bankrupt and sold it to the duke, the owner of the Old Castle. At the moment, inside is a museum of Goethe.


The newest rococo palace was built in 1736–1747 by Duke Ernst Augustus I, who at that time owned the Old Castle. The village located at the construction site was moved. Goethe, who was the minister in the region, often visited the palace and even lived here for 2 months.




Getting there: parking is here N 51 00.405 E 11 39.763, but in the evening we parked on the market square N 51 00.404 E 11 39.962. There is a railway station Dornburg (Saale) nearby, you have to walk up to the palaces.