Royal Palace Darmstadt

The origins of the palace date back to the 13th century, when the Counts of Katzenelnbogen built a moated castle here. After Darmstadt was granted city rights in 1330, the castle was first mentioned in a document a year later. Over the following two centuries, the complex was expanded and redesigned until it transformed into a palace, and Darmstadt became a secondary residence of the Katzenelnbogen counts. After the counts died out in 1479, the palace fell to Landgrave Heinrich III of Hesse. Under Philip the Magnanimous, the palace was partially destroyed in 1518 during an attack by Franz von Sickingen and again severely damaged in 1547 during the Schmalkaldic War. From 1567, Landgrave Georg I expanded the complex into a Renaissance residence with moats and bastions. In 1693, the keep was destroyed during a French attack.