The small, secluded area in Jüchen in the Rhine district of Neuss is affectionately known as "Dycker Ländchen": Dyck Castle, with its outer bailey and farmyard, stretches across four islands in the Kelzenberg stream, surrounded by an English landscape garden. The complex is one of the most culturally and historically significant moated castles in the Rhineland and is now a "Center for Garden Art and Landscape Culture".
Once a year, Schloss Dyck shines in all its colors. For one week, international light artists put the early baroque princely residence on the Lower Rhine and the adjacent parks and gardens in a very special light. The "Light Festival" with illuminations accompanied by music, candlelight and video projections throughout the grounds is the annual highlight of the Schloss Dyck Foundation's calendar of events, alongside the regular castle concerts and garden markets.
The foundation took over the estate in 1999 after it had been owned by the Salm-Reifferscheidt-Dyck family for more than 900 years and was able to hold its own against the power centers of Electoral Cologne, Jülich and Geldern. Since the foundation was established, some of the rooms in the east wing have been open to visitors. In the light-flooded banqueting hall, they can admire a baroque ceiling painting dating back to the construction period around 1656, as well as twelve tableaux by the rococo painter François Rousseau. Precious wall coverings, such as the Chinese silk wallpaper that Emperor Charles IV gave to his daughter Theresa, also bear witness to the former splendor of the court.
Exoticism in the landscaped garden
But it's not just the palace itself that makes the trip to the Rhineland worthwhile. Even when looking out of the windows of the stable courtyard, visitors can see the close connection between the exhibits on display here and the extensive park surrounding Schloss Dyck. The lord of the castle, Prince Joseph zu Salm-Reifferscheidt-Dyck, himself a passionate botanist and plant collector, had it laid out as an English landscape garden in the spirit of the Enlightenment at the beginning of the 19th century and brought exotic plants to Germany.
Against the backdrop of the moated castle, visitors stroll along forest paths and shady avenues past majestic giant yews, sequoias, Korean poplars and antler trees as they once did. The garden is a blaze of color in May, when the sprawling rhododendrons are in full bloom. Under the motto "East meets West", an Asian-Japanese inspired show garden was recently created on the grounds. And if you want to stay a little longer, take advantage of the store, the new restaurant in the coach house or stay overnight in the middle of the grounds at Hotel Schloss Dyck.
