In the former hunting castle, a tour is awaiting you through the living and staterooms of its former owners, the industrialist family of Stieber, dating back to the 19th century and one of the few well-preserved examples of historical interior design in Bavaria. The actual museum will be found on the second floor. Concrete witness of culture and history on Roth and its Administrative District is on display in 12 rooms. History of the Castle Ratibor Castle in Margraves Times George the Pious The former hunting castle of the Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach was erected by George the Pious (reigning from 1515 to 1547) between the years 1535 and 1538. A bronze plaque, the so-called list of donors, reveals some interesting details on the castle’s construction: His Serene Highness, the Highborne Prince and Lord Georg (…) had this castle built on the basis of the income of the Silesian principalities and had it called Ratibor on the River Retzet in the year of 1535, when counting from the birth of our dear Lord Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. Its strange-sounding name Ratibor is also the castle’s original name. As Georg, accompanied by his extensive entourage, was filled with hunting desire and thus regularly visited the area’s forests teeming with game, a hunting castle was erected in Roth. In the centuries after Georg the Pious, the castle temporarily fell into a deep sleep like Sleeping Beauty. The castle was serving as a seat of the margravial administrators and now and then it accommodated travelling princes. Margrave Alexander had the interior furnishing sold at the end of the 18th century. In 1791, after the abdication of Alexander, the Margravate Brandenburg-Ansbach fell into the hands of the Kingdom of Prussia. The new administration sold the castle, apart from its northern wing (Royal Stables), to the Roth gold and silver braid manufacturer Johann Philipp Stieber the very year. In the 1970s, the castle underwent a mayor renovation. The Royal Stables were gutted and today houses the library, along with the so-called Margrave Hall, the meeting hall of the city council. The historic furnishings in the main building and in the south wing were subject to a comprehensive restoration. Since 1953 the castle has been housing the Museum of the City of Roth and it has been open to the public as the Ratibor Castle Museum since 1985. The history of the museum Since 1953 the former local history museum of Roth has been in Ratibor Castle. It was founded as a local museum in 1904 and it was Karl Honig, a master baker from Roth, who formed the basis of the museum with his collection of “historical items from our home”. On 27th April 1905, the museum opened in a room of the elementary school (today’s town hall). In 1908, fourteen citizens from Roth founded the Historical Society of Roth, which took over the museum’s sponsorship. The collection was considerably growing under the direction of curator Johann Georg Mayer. In 1920, the museum moved to the ground floor of the “Old Town Hall”, where it was redesigned in close co-operation with the state office for the preservation of monuments under the direction of Maria Ritz in 1937. During World War II, the museum was relocated and reopened on the second floor of the Ratibor Castle Museum in 1953. In 1960, it underwent an extensive restructuring on the occasion of the 900th anniversary of the City of Roth. In 1986, the City of Roth took over the sponsorship as the Historical Society of Roth were now turning their attention to the newly founded Factory Museum. It was in the same year that, after years of closing and restoring, the partial reopening took place under the name Ratibor Castle Museum, now including the historical rooms of the castle in the concept of the museum. That redesign was essentially completed in 1994. Today it is one of the bigger Middle Franconian municipal and castle museums with an extensive exhibition programme. https://www.schloss-ratibor.de

Das Schloss Ratibor ist ein Jagdschloss in Roth in Mittelfranken. Es befindet sich am südlichen Ende der Rother Hauptstraße und besitzt einen Innenhof sowie einen kleinen Park. Georg der Fromme, Markgraf von Brandenburg-Ansbach, ließ es 1535–1537 errichten. Geschichte Das Schloss wurde im Stil der deutschen Frührenaissance erbaut, weist aber auch einige spätgotische Stilelemente auf. Der Bau wurde hauptsächlich durch Einnahmen aus dem oberschlesischen Doppelfürstentum Oppeln-Ratibor finanziert, das 1532–1551 an die Markgrafen von Brandenburg-Ansbach verpfändet war. Die Benennung Schloss Ratibor an der Retzet (Rednitz) leitet sich von der Residenzstadt Ratibor ab. Im Jahre 1791, mit der Abdankung des letzten Markgrafen von Brandenburg-Ansbach, erwarb der Fabrikant Johann Philipp Stieber das Gebäude und brachte dort eine Fabrik für Leonische Waren unter. Ab 1858 war das Landgericht in einem Flügel untergebracht. Von 1892 bis 1916 ließ Wilhelm von Stieber durch Künstler wie Ferdinand Wagner[1], Rudolf von Seitz, Friedrich Wanderer und Conradin Walther große Teile des Gebäudes im Stil der Spätrenaissance umgestalten, so zum Beispiel den Prunksaal mit Deckenmalereien aus der antiken Mythologie sowie Gobelins mit Szenen aus der Odyssee. Im Jahr 1942 wurde das Schloss der Stadt Roth als Geschenk übergeben. Es wird seitdem vielfältig genutzt. Im ehemaligen Marstall sind die Stadtbücherei und der Sitzungssaal des Stadtrates untergebracht, im zweiten Stock des den Hof umspannenden Flügels das Stadtmuseum und in einem Teil des Erdgeschosses die städtische Touristeninformation. Das Hauptgebäude beherbergt das Stadtarchiv. Im Sommer wird der Innenhof für die Aufführung der Schlosshofspiele benutzt. In den Jahren 2006 und 2007 wurden die Fassade und Teile der Innenräume generalsaniert. Bis zum Jahr 2015 wurden die ehemaligen Ratsstuben saniert und zu Veranstaltungsräumen umgebaut. Diese werden seitdem für Hochzeiten und repräsentative Veranstaltungen der Stadt genutzt.

2.00 EUR/3 Stunden 3.00 EUR Ermäßigt: 1.00 EUR 0 - 10 Jahre: gratis ab 25 Personen: 1.00 EUR Touristeninformationsstelle museumschlossratibor(@)stadt-roth.de - Montags geschlossen - Das Schloss beherbergt ein Museum - Schlossführung: 5.00 EUR/Ermäßigt: 3.00 EUR - Räume zu vermieten

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