The romantic vision of a medieval castle was a birthday present of King George V of Hanover (1819-1878) to his wife Queen Marie (1818-1907). Marienburg Castle was built as a summer residence for the Queen, who had long wished for a place to escape to from the official life of the court. The building was designed in the neo-Gothic style that was highly popular at the time. Until 21 years earlier - for the more than 120 years between 1714 and 1837 - there had been virtually no royal court in Hanover - as the House of Hanover had ruled Hanover and Britain by personal union. During that time the monarchs had lived almost exclusively in London and Hanover was largely lacking in the architecture typical of a royal capital. Perhaps that is why the “little country seat” the Queen had wished for grew into this magnificent stately home.
The architect commissioned with building the castle was Conrad Wilhelm Hase, one of Hanover’s most influential architects of the time. In 1864 he was succeeded by his former pupil Edwin Oppler, who fitted out the interior and made some changes to the design.
In 1866, while the castle was still under construction, war broke out between Prussia and Hanover. After Hanover was annexed by Prussia, King George V left the country, and went into exile in Austria, Queen Marie joined her husband one year later. Because of the war, Marienburg Castle has never been finished. The castle was left uninhabited, and it remained so for almost 80 years with only a caretaker in residence. For this reason, the original design is almost completely preserved. Marienburg Castle is still private property of the Royal House of Hanover.
The tour allows viewing the state and private rooms of the royal family. The elaborate interior design with historical furniture, paintings, rare and singular objects of arts impressively reawakens life at court during the end of the 19th century.
During the guided tour you see among other things the following highlights:
- knight's hall
- silver furniture of King George III
- dining hall
- the Queen's library
- the large castle kitchen
- the castle chapel

The tour focuses on history and architecture of Marienburg Castle. The design of Marienburg Castle, its hillside location and fortress-like architectural elements – the turrets, crenellated walls, loopholes and portcullis – make it especially captivating. A further highlight of the tour is the variety of personal items left in the castle.