Become a king or a queen for a day! The Rundāle Palace is one of the most outstanding monuments of Baroque and Rococo art in northern Europe. You will be impressed by the beauty of this 18th century prestigious palace built by Rastrelli with no less than 136 rooms. So do not wait, dukes, counts and barons await you in this magnificient pearl of Baroque.

The Rundāle Palace is one of the most outstanding monuments of Baroque and Rococo art in northern Europe.

The Italian architect Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli designed and supervised the construction of Rundāle Palace. After the death of Empress Anna Janovna the Duke was arrested and lived in exile in Russia. Construction work in the palace was resumed after the Duke came back at the beginning of the reign of Empress Catherine II. The major part of the interior was completed between 1765- 1768.

Italian masters Francesco Martini and Carlo Zucchi created the paintings on the ceilings and walls, while the sculptor Johann Michael Graff from Berlin and his team made stucco decorations on the background of artificial marble.

As a result of agrarian reforms in 1920 the palace became the property of the Republic of Latvia. After World War I flats and an elementary school were established in the damaged palace. In 1933 the palace was given over to the State Museum of History and limited repairs were carried out.

The palace did not suffer damage during World War II but after the war some of its rooms were adapted into a granary. In 1972 Rundāle Palace Museum was founded and restoration of the palace began.