Hofgarten (Innsbruck)
The Hofgarten in Innsbruck (German: Innsbrucker Hofgarten) is a protected park in Innsbruck, the capital city of the Austrian federal state of Tyrol. The park lies on the edge of the Old Town or Altstadt, covering an area of 10 hectares (25 acres), and borders on the Hofburg, the Kongresshaus and the Tyrolean State Theatre. During its 600 year existence this icon of garden styles that was originally a river meadow has been turned into a Renaissance garden, a French formal garden and, for the last 150 years or so, an English landscape garden. Its last conversion was conceived by Friedrich Ludwig von Sckell, but carried out four decades later by an unknown landscape designer who deviated significantly from Sckell's original proposal.
The Innsbruck Hofgarten is managed by the Austrian Federal Gardens (Österreichischen Bundesgärten), a subordinate department of the Ministry of the Environment (Bundesministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Umwelt und Wasserwirtschaft).
The Hofgarten is a recreation area within the city centre with an interesting and varied stock of mature trees, a set of ponds, a modern children's playpark, a palm house and a popular garden restaurant.
The Hofgarten management is responsible for taking care of the park. It is notable that there are still plants in the park that were planted personally by the Austrian Empress, Maria Theresa. In the middle of the park is a pavilion dating to 1733, in which numerous events - mainly concerts - take place, whilst chess tournaments are fought on the outsize chess board there.
There is a lawn for sunbathing in the Hofgarten with a children's playpark. Otherwise walking on the ornate lawns is not permitted because they are susceptible to excessive use.
In the palm house is a comprehensive collection of about 1,700 species of plant, which may be viewed mostly on working days. During the temporary art and sculpture exhibitions in the summer season the palm house may also be visited at weekends.
Sources [edit]
- Kurt Walde: Der Innsbrucker Hofgarten und andere Gartenanlagen in Tirol, Universitätsverlag Wagner, Innsbruck, 1964
- Monika Frenzel: Historische Gartenanlagen und Gartenpavillons in Tirol, Dissertation, Innsbruck, 1978
- Katharina Seidl: Der Innsbrucker Hofgarten. Geschichte, Gartentheorie, Denkmalschutzsituation und Zukunftsaussichten, Innsbruck, Univ., Dipl.-Arb., 1995
- Monika Frenzel: Gartenkunst in Tirol, von der Renaissance bis heute, Tyrolia-Verlag Innsbruck-Vienna, 1998
External links [edit]
- Austrian Federal Garden website about the Hofgarten (German)
- Event calendar for the Hofgarten (German)
Coordinates: 47°16′18″N 11°23′51.4″E / 47.27167°N 11.397611°E
