page_title: Hofburg, Innsbruck
section_title: Imperial Apartments
hierarchical_section_title: Hofburg, Innsbruck / Imperial Apartments
caption_attribution_description: English: Hofburg Innsbruck Hofburg Chapel Altar by Anton Sartori, 1766
context_page_description: The Hofburg is a former Habsburg palace in Innsbruck, Austria, and considered one of the three most significant cultural buildings in the country, along with the Hofburg Palace and Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna. The Hofburg is the main building of a large residential complex once used by the Habsburgs that still includes the Noblewomen's Collegiate Foundation, the Silver Chapel, the Hofkirche containing Emperor Maximilian's cenotaph and the Schwarzen Mandern, the Theological University, the Tyrolean Folk Art Museum, Innsbruck Cathedral, the Congress, and the Hofgarten.
  The original Hofburg palace was constructed from several elements under Archduke Sigismund around 1460. This structure included sections of medieval fortifications that ran along the eastern city wall. The building incorporated the Rumer Gate, which was later converted into the Heraldic Tower in 1499 by Jörg Kölderer under Emperor Maximilian I. The palace was expanded several times during the next 250 years. Between 1754 and 1773, the Hofburg palace underwent two stages of Baroque structural changes under Empress Maria Theresia: the south tract was constructed on the Hofgasse according to plans by J. M.
context_section_description: The following is a list of rooms in the Hofburg imperial apartments, starting at the Vestibule to the Chapel and moving counter-clockwise.
  The Vestibule to the Chapel contains mementos from the wedding of Leopold II and Maria Luisa of Spain in August 1765. The room contains a chasuble made from the nightdress of Emperor Francis I with the personal help of Empress Maria Theresa. The vestment bears the appliquéd imperial coats of arms of Hungary, Bohemia, Burgundy, and Tyrol on the outer front side, and the Austrian coat of arms on the inside. The initials "F.I." and "M.T." appear on the name tag. The vestibule also contains three large portrait paintings. The first is a full-length portrait of Maria Theresa as the foundress of the Noblewomen's Collegiate Foundation. Dressed in black window's garments, the empress is holding the insignia of the order in her right hand and showing the foundation document in her left hand. The two other portraits are of Archduchess Maria Elisabeth of Austria as abbess of the foundation, and a matching portrait of Emperor Joseph II in a white uniform jacket bearing the Order of the Golden Fleece and the Military Order of Maria Theresa.
  The Hofburg Chapel was built in 1765 and 1766 in the room where Emperor Francis I died. During the wedding celebrations of Leopold II and Maria Luisa of Spain, the emperor died suddenly after returning from the theatre on 18 August 1765. For the mourning Maria Theresa, the Hofburg took on greater importance "as a memorial site" to honor her husband. Per her instructions, the room was converted into a chapel. The long rectangular chapel extends two stories to a flattened ceiling, with walls decorated in the Rococo style in white and gold. The apex of the altar niche bears a cartouche with a crowning scroll bearing the empress's initials "M.T." The back wall of the niche is adorned by a large gilt cross and a painted relief group by F. A. Leitensdorfer depicting God the Father surrounded by mourning angels. The altar supports a larger than life-size sculpture group showing the Blessed Virgin holding the lifeless body of Jesus in her arms flanked by two mourning female figures. The altar group was executed by Anton Sartori in 1766. The chapel contains an organ with six registers built by Matthias Maracher from Zell am Ziller in 1857. The two matching paintings along the window wall depicting The Visitation and Young Mary in the Temple were painted by Johann Georg Dominikus Grasmair in 1732 and 1733. The wood painting Jesus Embracing the Cross dates from the late sixteenth century.
  The Noblewomen's Collegiate Foundation was founded by Maria Theresa and is still active. The daughter of the imperial couple, Maria Elisabeth, served as the first and only abbess from 1781 to 1805.
  The South Tower was built as a heraldic tower around 1500 and became a landmark of the city.
  The Guard Hall (Gardesaal) was the first of four public rooms that Maria Theresa furnished and served as a reception room for the Giants' Hall. It was considered a part of the "men's side" of the palace. The paintings reflect a period of history at the Hofburg. Archduke Charles V of Lorraine, through his notable military victories against the Turks, was instrumental in consolidating power for the House of Habsburg. He became the son-in-law of Emperor Ferdinand III through his marriage to Eleanor of Austria, whose portrait hangs on the window wall.
  The Giants' Hall (Riesensaal) contains paintings of Maria Theresa's children and grandchildren. The name of the hall refers to the original frescoes of Hercules that decorated the room.
  The Audience Chamber serves as a monument to the ancestors of Emperor Francis I.
  The Council Chamber contains paintings depicting solemn celebrations of Catholic lay orders.
  The Residence was the home of the daughter of Maria Theresa, Maria Elisabeth (1743–1808), who became Abbess of the Noblewomen's Collegiate Foundation in 1781. Elisabeth was the only person to live in the imperial apartments for a significant period of time.
  The Empress Elisabeth Apartment contains original
caption: Hofburg Chapel altar by Anton Sartori, 1766
exif: {"Image ImageDescription": "", "Image Make": "SONY", "Image Model": "DSC-V1", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Microsoft Pro Photo Tools", "Image DateTime": "2004:11:07 14:01:52", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image ExifOffset": "2350", "GPS GPSLatitudeRef": "N", "GPS GPSLatitude": "[47, 1614533/100000, 0]", "GPS GPSLongitudeRef": "E", "GPS GPSLongitude": "[11, 148109/6250, 0]", "Image GPSInfo": "6532", "Image PrintIM": "[80, 114, 105, 110, 116, 73, 77, 0, 48, 50, 53, 48, 0, 0, 2, 0, 2, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0]", "Image Padding": "[]", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "1/72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "1/72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "6756", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "5585", "EXIF ExposureTime": "13/10", "EXIF FNumber": "8", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Manual", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "400", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2004:11:07 14:01:52", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2004:11:07 14:01:52", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "4", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "3", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Spot", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire", "EXIF FocalLength": "117/5", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2592", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1944", "Interoperability Tag 0x0103": "6", "Interoperability Tag 0x010F": "SONY", "Interoperability Tag 0x0110": "DSC-V1", "Interoperability Tag 0x0112": "1", "Interoperability Tag 0x011A": "72", "Interoperability Tag 0x011B": "72", "Interoperability Tag 0x0128": "2", "Interoperability Tag 0x0132": "2004:11:07 14:01:52", "Interoperability Tag 0x0201": "2350", "Interoperability Tag 0x0202": "5878", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "6356", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Manual Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF Padding": "[]", "EXIF OffsetSchema": "4180"}