Wiesbaden: Encyclopedia II - Wiesbaden

Wiesbaden - Sights

The Schlossplatz ("palace square") is situated in the center of the city. There are two outstanding buildings around this square: the ducal palace and the new town hall. The palace was built by Duke Wilhelm of Nassau in 1840. For the twenty-six remaining years of ducal authority it was the residence of the ruling family. Today the building serves as Landtag (parliamentary building) for the federal state of Hesse. The New Town Hall replaced the old one in 1887. (The Old Town Hall, built in 1610, is the oldest preserved building of the city and is nowadays used as a civil registry office.) Engraved in the paving in front of the town hall there are the heraldic eagle of the Holy Roman Empire, the lion of Nassau, and the lilies of Wiesbaden.

The Protestant Marktkirche ("market church") was built from 1852 to 1862 in a neo-Gothic style. Its western steeple is 92 m (302 ft.) in height, being the highest building of the city. Another building from the regency of Duke Wilhelm is the Luisenplatz, a square named for the Duke's first wife. It is surrounded by Neoclassicist buildings, and in the middle there is the Waterloo Obelisk, commemorating the Nassauers who died in the wars against Napoleon.

The monumental Kurhaus ("spa house") (now containing a casino) and the Hessian state theater are from the time of Kaiser Wilhelm II.

Apart from the palace in the center the ducal family had a huge palace on the banks of the Rhine, known as Schloss Biebrich. This baroque building was erected in the first half of the 18th century.

North of the city there is the Neroberg. From the top of this hill it is possible to get a panorama of the city. A funicular connects the city with the hill.