The château de Pourtalès

A Strasbourg Trianon in Pourtalès park

This small, 18th-century château, with its resemblance to a Trianon, is tucked away on the edge of a large park. The château owes its current appearance to the Renouard de Bussière family, who became its owners in 1802. They decided to extend the château in 1844 and added a slate-covered mansard roof to the main building. A second phase of renovation began when Mélanie de Pourtalès inherited the château from her father and she added a building to the right wing of the château and completely revamped the interior.

Schiller International University moves into the château of Pourtalès

The main room on the ground floor is decorated with 17th-century panelling from a private mansion in Strasbourg. Other rooms are decorated in the then contemporary style of the 2nd Empire. Mélanie de Pourtalès, who like to surround herself with artists, also brought in Charles Spindler, a well-known local artist and marquetry inlayer, to decorate the children’s dining room. In 1907, she had a turret built to accommodate a library. The château is nowadays the headquarters of Schiller International University, which caters for foreign students.

The park around the château is also home to a number of contemporary artworks, such as Ernest Pignon-Ernest’s arbrorigènes and the massive bronze ears created by Italian artist Claudio Parmiggiani. The works of art prove provide a pleasant and unusual distraction when walking around the English-style garden of the park.