Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt was born on 14 November 1668 in
Genoa (
Republic of Genoa). Hildebrandt was the son of an
Italian mother and a
German father. Hildebrandt studied under C. Fontana in
Rome, and he studied civil and military engineering under
Prince Eugene of Savoy also in Rome, and military engineering in
Piedmont. Hildebrandt became the favourite architect of Prince Eugène. In 1696, Hildebrandt established himself thereafter in the
Austrian capital,
Vienna, where he worked for such noble families as the Dauns,
Harrachs,
Schönborns, and
Starhembergs, and also Prince Eugene himself. In 1700, Hildebrandt became
Hofburg court engineer, in 1711, head of the Court dept. of building, and in 1723, Hildebrandt became the Hofburg Court architect. At the Hofburg, however, Hildebrandt could not assert himself against the rivalry of the two Fischer von Erlachs (father
Johann Bernhard and son
Joseph Emanuel) and worked mainly for aristocrats. Unlike the monumental works of
Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach, Hildebrandt's works seem more committed at a personal level and include more decorative elements. This helped his popularity spread to the middle class. Hildebrandt united Italian and
French elements and shaped the development of the
baroque style in south
Germany and
Austria. Hildebrandt was also involved in many great projects which were developed by other architects (e.g.
Würzburg,
Göttweig Abbey,
Pommersfelden,
Palais Schwarzenberg). From 1713 to 1716, he was employed by the wealthy and powerful
Kinsky family of Austria, building their residence, the
Palais Kinsky, in
Vienna. From 1723 on, he was inspector-general of the imperial buildings. His two best-known works, the Upper Belvedere (1721–1722) and the Lower Belvedere (1714–1716), were both commissioned by
Prince Eugene of Savoy. Hildebrandt also worked in
Bavaria on the
Pommersfelden castle known as
Schloss Weißenstein. Hildebrandt built numerous city palaces in Vienna (e.g. Daun-Kinsky, 1716), his religious buildings are also of great importance (
St. Peter's Church and Maria Treu Piaristenchurch in Vienna, Teutonic Church in
Linz, or Dominican Church in Gabel,
Czech Republic). Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt died on 16 November 1745 in
Vienna. ==Selected works==