Middle Ages Saverne belonged to the
Prince-Bishopric of Strasbourg, of which it was the “capital,” and where the
Prince-bishop of
Strasbourg, the sovereign ruler, often resided starting in the 13th century due to political rivalries between him and the city of Strasbourg's citizenry. The then-residence, a medieval castle, incorporated the northern corner of the former Roman fort. Little is known about this structure, as it was replaced in the early 15th century by the
Château Vieux (Old Castle) located nearby, in close proximity to the Collegiate Church of Notre-Dame-de-la-Nativité, which is still preserved today. This residence was further expanded under Prince-Bishop
Albert of Palatinate-Mosbach (1478–1506).
The Baroque Palace In the next construction phase, a Renaissance castle was built, which was heavily damaged during the Peasants' War in 1525 and subsequently rebuilt. In the early 17th century, the building was neglected and not maintained by the Prince-Bishops for an extended period. Additionally, the city was besieged twice during the Thirty Years' War in 1622 and 1636. When Prince-Bishop
Franz Egon von Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg (1663–1682) arrived, he had what remained demolished and replaced it with a four-winged structure on an almost square layout from 1667 to 1670. Hardly had this been completed before the Prince-Bishop envisioned an extension: the northeastern wing of the building square was replaced by a new wing, 110 meters long, which extended well beyond the castle's square layout to the southeast. The architect is unknown. Antoine Coysevox and Claude Audran the Younger were involved in the interior decoration. The four successive 18th-century bishops after Franz Egon were from the Rohan family: •
Armand Gaston Maximilien de Rohan (1704–1749); •
Armand II. François Auguste de Rohan-Soubise (1749–1756); •
Louis César Constantin de Rohan-Guéméné (1756–1779); and •
Louis René Édouard de Rohan-Guéméné (1779–1803). They continued to expand the palace complex in a
baroque style. The palace saw two of the three marriages of
Charles, Prince de Soubise; firstly in 1741 to
Anne Therese of Savoy and secondly to
Anne Victoire of Hesse-Rotenburg in 1745. The furnishings were said to be magnificent. However, nothing has survived, as everything was destroyed in a major fire on the night of 7 on 8 September 1779.
Gallery: the Baroque palace File: Saverne Chateau des Rohan 1770.png|The Château around 1770 File: Saverne Chateau des Rohan Facade du Chateau 1729 Robert de Cotte Galica BNF.png | The palace by
Robert de Cotte around 1729 File: Chateau Saverne avant incendie.JPG|Model of the baroque Château before the fire of 1779 File: Saverne Chateau des Rohan Plan for Redesign by Robert de Cotte 1729 Galica BNF.png | Plan for a redesign of the palace by
Robert de Cotte around 1729 File: Saverne Tabernae.jpg | View of Saverne, the château and its park by Jean-Martin Weiss in 1751 File: Saverne Chateau Rohan on Snuffbox by Louis-Nicolas van Blarenberghe.png | View of the palace on a snuffbox by
Louis-Nicolas van Blarenberghe (1763-1764). The painting shows the Cardinal de Rohan receiving a lady in a tent, maybe Marie-Antoinette on her journey in 1770 to marry the Dauphin, later
Louis XVI (if so, the miniature was a later addition to the snuffbox) (collections
Waddesdon Manor) File: Saverne Chateau des Rohan Plan of Palace and Park 1712 Robert de Cotte Galica BNF.png | Plan of the palace and its park by
Robert de Cotte in 1712 File: Saverne Chateau des Rohan Design for a Pavillion des Bains 1730 Robert de Cotte Galica BNF.png | Design for a Pavillion des Bains by Robert de Cotte (intended to be right next of the Upper castle) File: Saverne Chateau des Rohan Plan for a Pavillion des Bains 1730 Robert de Cotte Galica BNF.png | Plan for a Pavillion des Bains by Robert de Cotte (intended to be right below in the gardens)
The Neoclassical Palace The palace was rebuilt on the same site from 1780 to 1790 by architect
Nicolas Alexandre Salins de Montfort. The patron was Cardinal Louis René Édouard de Rohan-Guéméné, who also owned other residences, including the magnificent
Palais Rohan in Strasbourg and the more modest
Rohan Palace in Mutzig. In order to furnish the castle, Louis René assembled a vast collection of costly
Qing porcelain and
lacquerware. The surviving pieces of this collection are prominently displayed in the apartments of the Strasbourg palace. When the
French Revolution broke out, the palace was in the final stages of construction. In 1790, Cardinal Louis René Édouard de Rohan-Guéméné moved his residence to
Ettenheim, in the eastern part of his principality across the
Rhine, thus leaving the palace without a purpose.
Gallery: the Baroque palace File: Saverne Elévation de la face du château Salins de Montfort 1788.png|Design for the central risalit facing the garden File: Saverne Elévation de la face du château right side Salins de Montfort 1788.png | Design for the right side of the garden front File: Saverne Plan du château des Rohan Salins de Montfort 1788.png | Plan of the palace main floor File: Saverne facade du château Salins de Montfort 1788.png|The palace facade File: Saverne Chateau fin 18e.JPG|Model of the neoclassical palace at the end of the 18th century
Start of 19th century The unfinished structure was seized and nationalized during the Revolution. Attempts by the state to sell it were unsuccessful. The state eventually used it temporarily as a barracks. Then it stood vacant until 1803, when it was sold to the city of Saverne, which ultimately donated it to the Legion of Honor with the expectation that they would restore and use the building; however, the Legion instead sold parts of it as building materials. Demolition and various uses were considered. The main wing by Salins de Montfort served as a barracks again from 1815 to 1818. In 1819, two of the wings of the square structure were actually demolished, and the northwestern wing was converted into the town hall. In 1830, the building once more served as a barracks, and starting in 1836, the city again sought a buyer, though unsuccessfully, or any kind of use to dispose of the building. Among the proposals was the idea of offering it to the Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Strasbourg for use as a station building.
Napoleon III and the palace as military barracks The gradual decline of the building was stopped under
Napoleon III, at that time still President of the
Second French Republic, who promised to take up the matter and rid the town of Saverne of its issue. Housing was to be created for widows of high-ranking military officers and officials. The work lasted from 1853 to 1857: the remaining square building, which the town had last used as a town hall, was demolished. The southwest side of the Montfort wing and the square in front of it were redesigned. Seventy-eight apartments and 130 rooms for servants were added. The main floor was horizontally divided to add a mezzanine level. To accommodate the required windows, relief sculptures originally located between the ground and upper floor windows were removed. Some of these were embedded in the retaining wall east of the castle. Ultimately, the renovation cost two million francs. The occupancy of the complex by eligible tenants was low. By 1862, only 15 of the 78 apartments were occupied, and by 1871, 18 were in use. After the
Franco-Prussian War, Prussian military forces moved into the castle, whose interior was remodeled for this purpose. Beginning in 1890, the 2nd Upper Rhine Infantry Regiment No. 99 was stationed here, making a name for itself with the
Zabern Affair in 1913. After the
First World War, the French military continued to use the castle as a barracks. In 1933, it was placed under historical protection. The relief sculptures removed from the garden-side façade during the 19th-century renovation were replaced in the central risalit area with new ones meant to resemble the originals. During and after the
Second World War, the palace was used first by the Wehrmacht and then by the U.S. Army, but it no longer served as a permanent garrison. The French Army eventually lost interest in the building, so in 1952, it was returned to the city of Saverne.
Today Today, one of the Palace's wings is used as a youth hostel, and another houses the
Espace Rohan, Saverne's 500-seat theatre and concert hall. Also, it houses the
municipal museum of Saverne (history, decorative arts, a large archaeological department), which was joined by the art and ethnographic collection of the politician
Louise Weiss in the 20th century. The castle is listed as a
Monument historique since 1933 by the
French Ministry of Culture. ==Architecture==