Schlossgarten (Karlsruhe)

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Schlossgarten (Karlsruhe) is a large landscape park north of Karlsruhe Palace, in the city center. It extends the palace grounds to the north and is a popular place for locals to relax and for events. The park sits inside a big protected green area that begins right in the city center and stretches toward the nearby Hardtwald forest.

The palace garden features meadows, many trees, a lake, and a long palace garden railway that runs 2.7 kilometers. It is bordered by the palace to the south, the Botanical Garden to the southwest, and the Ahaweg to the west and north. To the east lies the Fasanengarten with its small castle.

History in brief. Karlsruhe was founded in 1715 by Margrave Karl Wilhelm. At first there was a baroque garden in front of the palace. From 1731 to 1746, the garden behind the palace was redesigned in French Baroque style. Grand Duke Karl Friedrich later had parts redesigned again. Between 1767 and 1773 the western part became a Chinese garden with a central garden house and an artificial valley with a cave. From 1787 the park was transformed into an English landscape garden. The botanical garden began in 1808. The rear garden was redesigned in 1856, and the palace garden lake was created between 1864 and 1873. In 1884 the Weinbrenner-Tempel was moved into the park. For the 1967 Bundesgartenschau, the park was renovated in the English landscape style, the lake was redesigned, and the palace garden railway started (it was meant to be temporary but remained). In 2001 a blue majolica tile ribbon was laid from the palace tower to the majolica manufactory to mark an anniversary. In 2015, Karlsruhe’s 300th anniversary events included a temporary wooden pavilion in the park.

Today Schlossgarten is mostly an English-style landscape garden with open meadows, groups of trees, a lake, and a public railway. It is a protected cultural monument and hosts many events, some lasting several days. The park is a convenient and attractive green space right in the heart of Karlsruhe.