Schönborn Palace

Schönborn Palace is a Baroque building on Tržiště street in Prague's Malá Strana district. Since 1925 it has served as the seat of the United States Embassy to the Czech Republic, making it one of the few Prague aristocratic palaces still used for diplomatic purposes today.

Where is Schönborn Palace located?

The palace stands in the historic Malá Strana (Lesser Town) quarter, just below Prague Castle, on Tržiště street. It sits among other noble residences and former monastery buildings typical of this part of the city.

How did the palace come to be built?

The current building replaced five Renaissance houses that were destroyed during the Thirty Years' War, when Malá Strana was occupied by Swedish forces. Between 1643 and 1656, Count Rudolf Colloredo-Waldsee — Grand Prior of the Maltese Order and an Austrian general — had the new palace erected. Its first architect was Giovanni de Galliano Pieroni, who was better known in Prague as a builder of the city's fortifications.

The high Baroque rebuilding

The palace took on its current, more representative appearance in the early eighteenth century. Between 1715 and 1718, diplomat Hieronymus Colloredo-Waldsee commissioned a major rebuilding. The architects Giovanni Battista Alliprandi and Bartolomeo Scotti worked on the construction and decoration, and some sources also credit Jan Blažej Santini, one of the leading figures of Czech Baroque architecture, with a role in the project.

Where does the name Schönborn come from?

The name comes from the Schönborn family, who acquired the estate only in 1794 — more than a century after the palace was first built. The Schönborns, known for numerous foundations and residences across the former Habsburg monarchy, gave the building the name it still carries.

What is the palace's connection to Franz Kafka?

One of the palace's best-known tenants was Franz Kafka. In 1917 the writer rented two rooms there for several months. This brief residency is often mentioned today as a link between Prague's literary history and the architecture of Malá Strana.

Since when has the palace belonged to the United States?

The building's fortunes changed after the First World War. Richard Crane, who became the first United States Minister to the newly formed Czechoslovakia, acquired the palace shortly after the war ended. In 1925 he sold it to the United States government for 117,000 dollars. From that point on, the building has continuously served as the seat of the American diplomatic mission in Prague.

Can Schönborn Palace be visited?

Because the building is an active diplomatic mission, its interior is not open to tourists as part of regular sightseeing. Visitors walking through Malá Strana can, however, view the Baroque facade and part of the garden layout from Tržiště street and the surrounding lanes, which makes it a worthwhile stop on a walk through this part of Prague.

Frequently asked questions

What is Schönborn Palace? It is a Baroque palace in Prague's Malá Strana district, built in the seventeenth century and rebuilt in the eighteenth, now serving as the seat of the U.S. Embassy.

Who designed the palace? The original building was designed by Giovanni de Galliano Pieroni. The Baroque rebuilding of 1715–1718 is credited to Giovanni Battista Alliprandi and Bartolomeo Scotti, with Jan Blažej Santini also cited by some sources.

Where does the palace's name come from? From the Schönborn family, who became owners of the estate in 1794.

What is the palace's link to Franz Kafka? The writer rented two rooms there for several months in 1917.

Is Schönborn Palace open to visitors? No — as an active embassy building, its interior is not open for tours, though it can be viewed from the outside.