HISTORY
No other palace is so closely linked with the personality of Frederick the Great as Sanssouci. The name Sanssouci – without a care/ without concerns / without worries – should be understood as both the primary wish and leitmotif of the king, because this was the place where he most preferred to retreat in the company of his dogs. The king’s summer residence was ultimately his favorite place and sanctuary in difficult times.
The location of the palace beside its well-known vineyard terraces and the originally preserved 18th century interior decoration allow visitors to delve into the world of the “philosopher of Sanssouci.” The interiors are characterized by their elegance and stylish displays of grandeur. They are also a clear expression of the king’s love of beautiful surroundings – his “Prussian Arcadia.”
It is of note that the king wished to be buried in a crypt on the uppermost terrace of the vineyard. Even in death, he wanted to be near his beloved Sanssouci. His wish was granted, although not until his reburial there in 1991. Frederick the Great’s grave is located on the highest terrace.
Sanssouci was the summer palace of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, in Potsdam, near Berlin. It is often counted among the German rivals of Versailles. While Sanssouci is in the more intimate Rococo style and is far smaller than its French Baroque counterpart, it too is notable for the numerous temples and follies in the park.
In 1745, Friedrich II commissioned his architect Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff to build him a small summer palace. Finished just two years later, it was set above a terraced vineyard with trellises and glazed niches, all laid out at the same time. There are also two other buildings to the right and left of the palace: the Neue Kammern (New Chambers), which Friedrich had constructed as a guest house, and the Picture Gallery with works by Rubens, Caravaggio and Tintoretto.
Later, Friedrich Wilhelm IV had the two wings enlarged. In 1873, Wilhelm I opened the palace as a museum – as one of the very first palace museums in Germany. Sanssouci survived the Second World War unscathed, though some of the art works and furniture removed for safe keeping went missing.
The palace is elegant rather than opulent – after all, it was intended as a summer residence, a retreat to enjoy the country air. In contrast to the baroque splendour of the stately Neues Palais (New Palace) at the other end of the park, Sanssouci is informed by the lighter spirit of the rococo. And with this little palace only comprising twelve rooms, it was clearly designed for intimacy rather than show.
The entire complex with its palaces and park is inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage, recognised as “an outstanding example of architectural creations and landscaping” and “a cultural property of exceptional quality”.
Sanssouci Park
The garden at the base of the terraces is baroque in style, with a large, central fountain. In the nineteenth century, Peter Joseph Lenné, Prussia’s leading landscape gardener, was commissioned to lay out the spreading park grounds. The park has many delightful decorative features, including the Neptune Grotto by Knobelsdorff, the small round neo-classical Temple of Friendship, which Friedrich built in memory of his favourite sister, and the Great Fountain. The Chinese House is a wonderful mix of rococo and chinoiserie, complete with three gilded figures. The interesting features nearby include the Historic Mill, set close to the Sanssouci Palace and grounds. For a stunning view of the area, it is well worth visiting the Norman Tower on the Ruinenberg hill and the two Belvederes – the Belvedere on Klausberg hill and the Belvedere on Pfingstberg hill.
The Orangery Palace, built in an Italianate style by Wilhelm IV, renowned as the “Romantic on the throne”, was the last building constructed in the park. Here, the sensitive plants in tubs spend winter in the plant halls. The main palace hall is naturally more ornate, and decorated by copies of Raphael’s works. The taste for an Italianate architectural style is also evident in the Roman Baths and the Friedenskirche (Church of Peace). The former royal Charlottenhof Palace, designed jointly by architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel and landscape designer Peter Joseph Lenné, offers a fascinating mix of architecture and landscaping.
CURRENT SITUATION
The castles and garden architecture in the extensive Sanssouci park are managed by the Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation Berlin-Brandenburg and have been under UNESCO protection since 1990 as a World Heritage Site.
