Babelsberg Park is a 124-hectare park in the northeast of Potsdam. It was designed by landscape architect Peter Joseph Lenné and later Prince Hermann von Pückler-Muskau on behalf of the then prince and later Emperor William I and his wife Augusta in 1833.
Prince William strove to have his own residence built with a landscaped park. The idea was supported by Lenné, who had previously designed other parks and was looking to create similar gardens in Potsdam. Thrifty by nature, King Frederick William III was convinced to finance the project for his son. The implementation of the project was difficult due to differences between Lenné and his patrons, particularly Princess Augusta who had fundamentally different visions for the park’s design. Lenné was eventually dismissed and the task of completing Babelsberg Park was given to Prince Hermann von Pückler-Muskau in 1842. Pückler-Muskau retained the original design, although several new elements were added including artificial lakes the Schwarze Meer, the Kindermannsee and the Große See. Mosaic borders were also added around the palace terraces and flower beds along with the Golden Rose Staircase above the pleasure ground. The staircase and winding paths to a nearby lake links the palace with the stunning landscape within the park.
Several buildings, viewpoints and resting places are found throughout the park, including the Flatow Tower (Flatowturm). The tower served as a guest house as well as a scenic lookout. Notable buildings include the neo-Gothic Babelsberg Palace and the Dampfmaschinenhaus to the north-west of the palace at the Glienicke Lake is located, which housed a steam engine that powered the park’s irrigation system. Other buildings include the Little Palace (Kleines Schloss), which today houses a café and a restaurant, the Royal Stables (Marstall), the Court Arbour (Gerichtslaube), and the Sailors' House (Matrosenhaus), which has a kitchen built in 1859-60 with an underground passage connected to the palace. There are also several small monuments within the park, including a statue of the Archangel Michael behind the palace in an idyllic setting surrounded by trees and benches. The Betsäule stands on the banks of the Havel and the Victory Column commemorates the successfully run Austro-Prussian War of 1866. The Babelsberg Park in Potsdam is open from 6:00 in the morning and closes at dusk.
- Monday to Sunday: 06:00 am to approximately 21:00 clock
Events in Potsdam
ticket sales
Music Festival in PotsdamThe Music Festival in Potsdam will be held again in June. This year's theme "Music and gardens" ubiquitous. So even on the opening day in June. Interesting and unique you can take guided tours and visits to many different places. For those interested there is an Opera Workshop.
TICKETSDetails about the Music Festival in Potsdam can be found here.
The concert on the eve and Night of the Palaces in PotsdamThe Park of Sanssouci and Sanssouci Palace with its terraced vineyards and the New Palace are undisputedly the most important monuments in Potsdam, therefore provides the Night of the Palaces as an excellent temporal orientation, to learn more about the state capital of Brandenburg.
TICKETSDetails about the Night of the Palaces can be found here.