Mergentheim Residential Palace

In the middle of the spa town of Bad Mergentheim on the river Tauber stands a palace from which one of Europe's most powerful religious orders was governed for almost 300 years. From 1527 to 1809, Mergentheim Residential Palace was the headquarters of the Grand Masters of the Teutonic Order. Today the Teutonic Order Museum tells the order's story here, and a 16th-century spiral staircase is regarded as a masterpiece of German stonemasonry.

History: from moated castle to the order's residence

The complex goes back to a castle from around 1090. In 1219 the three Hohenlohe brothers, just back from crusade, gave the young Teutonic Order two castles in Mergentheim. After Horneck Castle was destroyed in the Peasants' War in 1525, Mergentheim became the order's headquarters. From 1568 the Grand Masters turned the medieval moated castle into a Renaissance palace, and in the 18th century it was extended into a Baroque residence.

When Napoleon dissolved the order in 1809, its time as a residence ended and Mergentheim passed to Württemberg. A duke later lived here, and afterwards the palace served as army barracks. The Teutonic Order Museum was founded in 1961, and the palace was restored between 1975 and 1996. Since 2023 it has been looked after by the State Palaces and Gardens of Baden-Württemberg.

What to see

• Berwart staircase: In 1574 Blasius Berwart built a spiral staircase with an open newel in the north-west stair tower. Look up: its underside is carved with flowers, angels' heads, birds, a unicorn and an imperial eagle in fine relief.
• "The Great Snail": Its counterpart from 1586, between the west and south wings, has a late Gothic vault.
• Palace church: Built from 1730 by Franz Joseph Roth, advised by Balthasar Neumann and François de Cuvilliés. Johann Nikolaus Stuber painted the ceiling fresco "Glorification of the Cross". In the crypt, gravestones commemorate members of the order.
• State rooms and chapter hall: The Grand Masters' apartments and the chapter hall were created in 1780/82 to designs by Franz Anton Bagnato.
• Teutonic Order Museum: It covers the order's history from 1190 to the present, plus local history, a room on the poet Mörike, dolls' houses and an exhibition on Jewish life in Mergentheim.

Opening hours and admission (as of October 2026)

• 1 April to 31 October: Wednesday to Sunday and holidays 10:30–17:00.
• 1 November to 31 March: Wednesday to Saturday 14:00–17:00, Sundays and holidays 10:30–17:00.
• Admission: adults €8, concessions €4, families €20; with a guided tour €10.
• Palace garden: open during the day, free.

The "2erlei Schlosskultur" combined ticket also covers Weikersheim Palace, a few kilometres away, and is valid for a year. Allow one and a half to two hours for the museum and church.

Getting there

The address is Schloß 16, 97980 Bad Mergentheim. It is a 5 to 7 minute walk from the station, and the entrance is in the inner courtyard. Paid parking is available within walking distance. Cyclists can ride straight to the palace on the Tauber Valley cycle path.

Tripto tip

Do not just climb the Berwart staircase: stand at the bottom in the middle and look straight up into the spiral. Afterwards, take a walk through the palace garden. With a full day, combine Mergentheim with Weikersheim and its Baroque garden.