Albrechtsburg Castle. Reach for the top!
Albrechtsburg Castle is outstanding. In many ways. In 929 AD, Henry I founded the Misni Castle here.
In the 11th century, the Wettins replaced the wooden fortification by a fortress of stone. Saxony’s amassed wealth enabled the Wettin brothers Ernest and Albert to start building a residence in 1471, thus setting a pompous sign of wealth and rule. Experience this unique place as a vivid cultural site: »Albrechtsburg Castle. Reach for the top! - Architecture, power and porcelain in the oldest castle of Germany«
Five exhibition areas are waiting to be visited
- At the centre of power - The Meissen Hill and the Wettins in the Middle Age
At the heart of Europe and often enough at the epicenter of ever-changing history: Saxony and the House of Wettin. The dynasty that ruled here from the Middle Ages to 1918 provided one of the seven Electors to elect the German king. And as their ancestral seat, the Meissen castle used to be both a political and religious center of power in European history. Embark on a 500-year journey back in time – at the original location of a fascinating knightly and courtly culture.
- The extraordinary architecture of Albrechtsburg Castle – a stroke of genius
Unlike other major projects in their time, the Meissen palace did not emerge over many building stages, but as a holistic design of a master builder genius: Arnold von Westfalen. New shapes and techniques were applied here for the first time in the 15th century and developed to perfection – up to our day, the complex as a whole as well as fine details have amazed the visitor.
- Residing in the castle – what it could have been like
Any castle has its secrets. And we do not pretend to know everything. But what everyday life in the Albrechtsburg could have been like in the late 15th century can very well be reconstructed – and experienced! Lots of pictures, documents, old accounts and other sources provide a highly interesting insight.
- Splendid new looks for the castle – Albrechtsburg Castle in the 19th century
The porcelain manufactory moved out – and new splendor could move in. At the end of the
19th century, Wilhelm Rossmann, Privy Court Councillor, developed his artistic design concept for the entire castle. Its core idea: a "painted picture book” of the history of the dynasties and of the state. In 1881, the Albrechtsburg was reopened as a museum and showed its visitors, back then as it does today, historical events in monumental murals.
- Experiment and manufacture – the Albrechtsburg as the first European porcelain manufactory
Long had been the search in Saxony for the "arcanum": the secret of porcelain-making – until it was found in Dresden in 1708. Immediately afterwards, in 1710 Augustus the Strong initiated the foundation of the manufactory in the Albrechtsburg. Its repertoire as well as the operation grew quickly and enormously – up to 700 staff in 1766. The castle became the basis for the triumphal procession of the Meissen porcelain. Learn here how everything began!
