Germany Guide
Northern Bavaria: Franconia
Neue Residenz
Address: Domplatz
Opening time: Guided tours daily: April– Sept 9am–6pm; Oct– March 10am–4pm
Price: €4
Zigzagging across the north side of Domplatz is the impressive, the Baroque Neue Residenz, begun in 1613 but extended to its present magnificence under prince-bishop Lothar von Schönborn between 1697 and 1703. The work of Leonhard Dientzenhofer, it has more than forty state rooms, the most impressive of which is the Kaisersaal, decorated with sixteen larger-than-life-size portraits of Holy Roman Emperors by Melchior Steidl and with a subtly trompe l'oeil ceiling – much shallower than it appears. More intimate but touching are the apartments once occupied by Otto of Greece, a member of the Bavarian Wittelsbach royal family who became King of Greece in 1832 but who as a devout Catholic refused to convert to the Orthodox faith and was ultimately forced to abdicate in 1862. He lived out the remainder of his years in Bamberg. After the tour, you can enjoy the paintings of the Altdeutsche Galerie – including works by Lucas Cranach the Elder and Michael Wolgemut – at your leisure. The rose garden behind the Residenz is absolutely lovely, and boasts sweeping views over the rooftops of the town and up to the Michaelsberg monastery.