Image collection »Hofburg Innsbruck«
As the former Habsburg residence, the grounds of Innsbruck's Hofburg palace once also housed a home for aristocratic ladies, the Silver Chapel, the Court Church, the new aristocratic home, the cathedral, the ballroom as well as the court gardens. Duke Friedrich IV, who transferred his seat of rule from Meran to the more central Innsbruck and his successor Duke Sigmund began to acquire the grounds of today's Hofburg during the 15th century and with this also built a representative palace. From 1754 Empress Maria Theresia had the Hofburg rebuilt into a baroque palace. Under Napoleonic rule the former Habsburg residence served as a secondary residence of the Bavarians. In 1809 even Andreas Hofer lived and resided in the Hofburg for a month. The palace which was seriously damaged during the second world war was restored in the years that followed and is nowadays used for a number of purposes, for example, the former imperial rooms are open to the public.