The term palace was originally used to describe a noble residence that, as opposed to a castle, was neither fortified nor in a rural setting. In Vienna, where the Habsburg family resided for centuries, numerous noble families from all over the empire settled in the capital to be near the Hofburg. After World War II many of the palaces were sold by their original owners. Today they house government ministries, embassies, museums and shops.
The concentration of palaces is particularly high in the 1st district of the city’s old town. The Ferstel Palace takes center stage on the expansive Freyung square. Architect Heinrich Ferstel, who also designed the city’s Ringstrasse boulevard, drew his inspiration from the Venetian-Florentine Trecento style. The palace’s arcade houses shops selling antique and jewelry, interior design studios, and one of Vienna’s premiere chocolatiers, Xocolat. The Harrach Palace next door features housewares retailers and art galleries.
There are also breathtaking palaces to be seen in the pedestrian zones along Kohlmarkt, Graben and Kärtner Strasse. The Dorotheum Palace, built on the site of the former Dorotheerkloster convent, has been the seat of the internationally renowned Dorotheum auction house since 1901. A few doors down is the Dietrichstein Palace, which is home to the Doblinger music shop, one of Europe’s largest purveyors of sheet music.
