The Garden of the Palatinate, or Hortus Palatinus, can be found on the complex of Heidelberg Castle. The Baroque garden was constructed in Italian Renaissance style in 1614 by Frederick V, Elector Palatine for his wife Elizabeth Stewart. At the time, the garden had used modernistic horticultural and landscaping techniques which made it a famous across Europe in the 17th century - even being recognized as “Germany’s greatest Renaissance garden” and the “Eighth Wonder of the World”. Funnily enough, the garden was never completed with the onset of the Battle of White Mountain, which forced Frederick and his wife into a life of exile, and the Thirty Years War where the gardens were used as an artillery base. When his son finally returned to the castle in 1648 the gardens were in ruins and stayed that way till today.

Schloß-Wolfsbrunnenweg 16, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany

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