Standing on the Apothekerberg, the castle has an eventful history.
Originally built in 1798/99 by David Gilly as a classicist villa in Prussian rural architecture and as a retirement home for Queen Friederike Luise, Walther Rathenau woke it from its deep sleep in 1909. Completely plundered in 1945, the castle survived the GDR as the Pushkin House (named after the poet Pushkin) and after the fall of the Berlin Wall became a museum and Rathenau memorial site.
A beautiful hilly castle park, along with a theater pavilion (tea house), fountains and many stairs, surrounds the castle.