Between 1739 and 1751, the main building of the palace was rebuilt under the direction of the Oberland master builder Johann Knöffel. It was his last building and can be regarded as one of his major works.
A number of important artists were involved in the design of Hubertusburg Castle, such as the sculptors Lorenzo Mattielli, Benjamin Thomae and Gottfried Knöffel, the painters J. B. Grone, J. A. Pöppelmann, Chr. W. E. Dittrich and the painting theorist A. F. Oeser.
The main building with the supposed castle tower is particularly impressive. However, it is not a tower, but a high, four-sided ridge turret resting on the broad central risalit. With its almost oversized large sound holes and the onion dome, which is crowned by a leaping stag as a weather vane, it is somewhat reminiscent of the crown gate of the Dresden Zwinger, but is much slimmer and more graceful.
Today, only the preserved Catholic castle chapel of St. Hubertus bears witness to the castle's former splendor. All other room furnishings were plundered in 1761 in retaliation for the partial devastation of Charlottenburg Berlin (by Austrian, Russian and Saxon troops during the Seven Years' War) and subsequently altered.
The Hubertusburg Peace Treaties, which were signed by Saxony, Prussia and Austria on February 15, 1763, ended the Seven Years' War. The end of the Seven Years' War also meant the end of the so-called "Augustan Age" for Saxony. Just a few months after signing the peace treaty, Elector Friedrich August died on October 5, 1763.
Guided tours of Hubertusburg Castle can be booked through the Wermsdorf tourist information office.
Good to know
Openings
Opening hours of the tourist information office: Monday-Friday 10 am - 2 pm
Directions & Parking facilities
By car: Follow the A14 to the Mutzschen exit or take the B6 to Luppa and turn onto the S24 to Wermsdorf.
Parken
Free parking is available in "Hubertusburger Straße" and "An der Hubertusburg".
Öffentliche Verkehrsmittel
From Leipzig main station, take the RE50 to Dahlen. Then take bus line 816 to Hubertusburg, Wermsdorf (approx. 11 minutes on foot) or Hirschplatz, Wermsdorf (approx. 15 minutes on foot).
Alternatively, take the 630 bus from Grimma to the Reckwitz or Hirschplatz stop. From Oschatz take bus 801 to the bus stop Am Fasanenholz or Am Strauß.
Author
Daniela Kuhnert
Organization
LEIPZIG REGION
License (master data)
Daniela Kuhnert
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