Last Updated on 29th September 2022 by Sophie Nadeau
One of the newest TV show period dramas to drop on Netflix in the fall of 2022 is The Empress, a series about a 16 year old girl who falls in love with her sister’s fiancé, Emperor Franz Joseph. Set in Bavaria, a state in southeast Germany, here’s your guide to all of the top The Empress Filming locations, and which ones you can visit for yourself!
The show is a German language romantic drama series that is known in German as Die Kaiserin. Set over six episodes, the show has been dubbed into plenty of other languages, including English.
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What is the plot of The Empress?
The Empress is a historical drama which follows the story of Empress Elisabeth “Sisi” of Austria. Devrim Lingnau plays the main character, the Empress, while Philip Froissant plays Franz Joseph. Much of the drama is focused on the roles of those at the Imperial Court.
The events of the show unfold after the two meet (he was actually originally engaged to Elisabeth’s older sister) and fall in love. This show is all about political intrigue and many of the scenes focus on tension between Elisabeth and various family members.
One of the chief disputes is between the young Empress and her mother in law, Sophia, who also happens to be her aunt, as well as how Franz Joseph’s younger brother Maximilian keeps trying to outshine his older brother and prove that it is actually he who is worthy of the throne.
Is The Empress based on a true story?
The TV series is a dramatised version of the life of Empress Elisabeth “Sisi” of Austria. Much like The Crown, many scenes are imagined, but the wider events actually happened and all of the characters actually existed and lived in the 19th-century. It’s also fair to say that a number of scenes take place outdoors in the countryside, where beautiful shots of the Bavarian countryside are shown.
The Empress Filming Locations
The majority of the show was filmed in Bavaria, with many historical castles used as the backdrop for exterior scenes. Filming for the show reportedly began in August of 2021. Many of the castles used for filming are situated pretty close together, which made it much easier for the crew!
New Palace and Cathedral Square in Bamberg
The exterior of Bamberg Cathedral and Bamberg Cathedral Square are actually in the initial shots of The Empress and show the Empress getting ready for her wedding. Bamberg Cathedral (known as Bamberger Dom St. Peter und St. Georg or Bamberger Dom for short in German) is one of the grandest buildings in the city and was founded in 1002.
Schloss Weißenstein
One of the principal locations for The Empress is Schloss Weißenstein, which is a palatial residence in Pommersfelden. The complex was constructed between 1711 and 1718 and is now open to the public as a kind of museum. There are also special tours in September and October 2022 for those who want to learn more specifically about The Empress filming locations at the castle.
Schloss Eyrichshof near Ebern
Yet another castle which was used to film scenes for the show is Eyrichshof Castle near Ebern. This beautiful castle’s exterior was used to represent Empress Sisi’s childhood home growing up and is one of the first scenes of the series following the cathedral scenes.
Unfortunately, the castle remains in private hands. As such, its interior can’t be visited outside of special events and so only the exterior of the 13th-century established castle can be enjoyed.
Schloss Faber-Castell in Stein
The staircase of Faber-Castell Castle in Stein was used in the show. The building itself is sometimes referred to as Steiner Castle, Castle Faber-Castell, and even ‘pencil castle’ on account of the fact that part of the castle was built in the early 20th-century for the Faber- Castell family who had made their fortune from stationery.
Bayreuth
Bayreuth is a town on the Red Main river in Bavaria that is famed for its association with the composer Richard Wagner. Several locations in and around town were used to shoot The Empress including Neues Schloss in Bayreuth and Hermitage Palace in Bayreuth.
Babelsberg studio in Potsdam
While a lot of scenes were filmed at real historical sites, other scenes were shot at the Babelsberg studio in Potsdam. Other filming locations for The Empress include Schloss und Park Fantaisie and Schloss Friesenhausen in Aidhausen.