Elector Carl Theodor (1742-1799) had the pink pleasure and hunting lodge built by Nicolas de Pigage. His masterpiece was completed after 17 years of construction in 1773. The previous building, also a hunting lodge from 1666, was old and dilapidated. Remnants of this are the orangery and the chapel south of it, as well as the towers at the entrance to Urdenbacher Allee. The "maison de plaisance" was intended as a private residence, but Carl Theodor is said to have only stayed there once. His wife Elisabeth Auguste only looked at the castle once. The first permanent resident was Duke Wilhelm in Bavaria from 1804 to 1806. He was the great-grandfather of Empress Elisabeth of Austria and had come to the Rhineland as a governor. When the Rhineland was awarded to Prussia in 1815, the Prussian royal family used the castle. They treasured and cherished it. In 1907, Benrath Palace became too expensive for the Prussians and they wanted to get rid of it. After tough negotiations, the municipality of Benrath acquired the castle in 1911, thanks to the perseverance of the then mayor Julius Melies (1906-1926). Benrath Castle and the park remained open to the public. In 1912 the castle grammar school was housed in the east wing. It was taught there until 1980. One of his students was the world-famous film director and Urdenbacher, Wim Wenders. From 1950 to 1991 state receptions were held in the castle. Queen Elizabeth, Emperor Haile Selassie, Erich Honecker and Michael Gorbachev are just a few of the guests who were received at the palace. At the beginning of the 1880s, Rittmeister Armand von Ardenne and his wife Elisabeth, better known as “Effi Briest”, lived in the eastern wing. Her fate inspired Theodore Fontane to write his novel "Effi Briest". Thomas Mann also liked the castle and set his novella "Die Betrogene" - also a tragic love story - in and around Düsseldorf and Schloss Benrath aka Holterhof.
Those who like to walk straight ahead for a longer period of time to run fast sections are at the right place and will be rewarded with the Benrath Castle as a feast for the eyes.