Rokoko Castle Dornburg

The Rococo Palace is the middle and youngest of the three Dornburg Palaces. From 1732, Duke Ernst August of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, as part of his plans for a grand military review in the Saale valley, modeled after August the Strong's Zeithain encampment, had over 21 burgher houses demolished and the Rococo Palace built in their place by state architect Richter. The predecessor building of the current palace was erected on the foundations of the bailiff's residence.

Due to structural defects, however, the palace had to be demolished again. The master builder Gottfried Heinrich Krohne from Franconia rebuilt the current residential building (Corps de logis) including the side pavilions by 1747. After its completion, the small palace was hardly used by the ducal family, and all side and utility buildings completed up to that point, except for the current stables, were pulled down. From 1776, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, as a ducal minister, used the palace as quarters during official stays in the Dornburg district, as the so-called Goethe Palace only came into the Duke's possession after 1800. From 1816 to 1817, Duke Carl August of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach had the palace extensively renovated and furnished as a summer residence. In the winter of 1818/19, the state parliament of the Duchy convened in the palace during its 1st session. The state parliament convened by the Duke was the first parliament of a constitutional monarchy in Germany. From 1900, the Rococo Palace was used as a museum. A lack of building-preserving measures led to structural decay, which resulted in the closure of the palace around 2000. The Rococo Palace underwent fundamental renovation in the following years and has been open to visitors again since June 2006.