Palace of Ludwig Viktor

Palais Erzherzog Ludwig Viktor stands at Schwarzenbergplatz 1, right on the Schubertring axis. Heinrich Ferstel built it in 1863-1866 for the youngest brother of Emperor Franz Joseph, Archduke Ludwig Viktor, in Italian Renaissance style. The Archduke was a contested figure at the Viennese court, publicly eccentric and homosexual, and after a scandal in 1904 was permanently banished to Klessheim Palace near Salzburg; the palace stood empty afterwards. After 1918 the Burgtheater moved in with rehearsal stages and still uses the building as a venue for productions close to the Akademietheater. Visitors with an evening ticket enter a hall in one of the few Ringstrasse palaces with continuous cultural use.