Stadtschloss Kassel

The city palace was located at an elevation of 156 meters above sea level, at the site of the current regional government office (German: Regierungspräsidium) overlooking the Fulda river.

[1] At the site of the Frankish Royal Court (German: Königshof), the first castle was built by Henry I, Landgrave of Hesse in 1277 and later expanded by his successors.

[2] Between 1462 and 1466, Landgrave Louis II replaced the first castle by a new building: A rectangular, southwest-to-northeast-oriented structure arose, consisting of a two-story stone base and a one-story timber-framed upper floor.

[2] Between 1556 and 1562, using parts of the existing structure, fortress architect Antonius Riemenschneider constructed a Renaissance-style palace in its place.

Court painters Caspar van der Borcht and Jost vom Hoff played key roles in decorating the interiors.

William IV also established the first observatory in Central Europe at the palace, consisting of two balconies on the southern front with a balustrade walkway.

[2] William IV's son, Landgrave Maurice, continued the transformation by renovating the chapel between the Rothenstein Wing and the women's quarters.

The palace now became a three-story, four-wing structure with an almost square layout around a spacious courtyard, featuring a high roof with numerous dormer windows.

The palace remained largely unchanged until the French invasion in December 1806, serving as the residence of the House of Hesse-Kassel.

[2] Jérôme, who was more focused on his pleasures and financially ruining his kingdom, moved to the Bellevue palace and showed no interest in rebuilding.

Elector William I returned to Kassel on 21 November 1813, after the French were expelled from Hesse in the Wars of Liberation.

[3] The work on the neoclassical building was then abandoned, as his son and successor, Elector William II, preferred his princely palace on Friedrichsplatz, the Residenzpalais, and showed no interest in continuing the Chattenburg project.