Ingelheim Imperial Palace

Ingelheim am Rhein, Germany, Germany

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Ingelheim Imperial Palace, or Ingelheimer Kaiserpfalz, was a major Carolingian and later Ottonian imperial palace built in the second half of the 8th century under Charlemagne in the town of Ingelheim am Rhein, Rhineland‑Palatinate, about 15 km west of Mainz.

It served kings of the Frankish Empire and subsequent Holy Roman Emperors as a temporary seat of government and symbol of imperial power, hosting royal assemblies and courtly events from the late 8th to the 11th century.

The palace complex combined Roman‑style villa architecture with early medieval royal buildings and included a large throne hall, the Aula regia, as its central representative space. Today only partial above‑ground ruins and extensive buried foundations remain, but archaeological excavations and a dedicated visitor centre in Nieder‑Ingelheim allow visitors to explore the layout and splendour of this once‑monumental imperial residence.