Shonbrunn+Palace

The Shonbrunn Palace is the former residency of the Hapsburgs. The palace was finished in 1780, but its history goes all the way back to 1569. Emperor Maximilian II owned that land at the time and to him, it was a resort. During one of the springs, his son came and said "What a beautiful spring." which is said to be the reason why the area is now called Shonbrunn. After about a century, the Turkish invaded Vienna and destroyed the palace that was there. Emperor Leopold I decided to rebuild the palace, but to make it grander than any other palace in the world. To design it, he got the architect Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach. Construction of the palace started in 1696. All through out the years, the Hapsburgs have lived there and occupied the whole area. Finally, in 1918, Charles I gave the palace away to the state. The Shonbrunn area includes, other than the palace, there are very many gardens. The most famous is the French garden called the Great Parterre. In addition to all of the various gardens, there are also very many fountains and statues, such as the Neptune Fountain and the Roman Ruins.