The Belvedere was built as the summer residence of Prince Eugene of Savoy by Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt. A brilliant military commander whose strategies helped vanquish the Turks in 1683, the Prince became a favourite at the Austrian court and with the people. Situated on a gently sloping hill, the Belvedere consists of two palaces linked by a formal garden designed in the French style by Dominique Girard. The garden is laid out on three levels, each conveying a complicated series of Classical allusions: the lower part represents the domain of the Four Elements, the centre is Parnassus and the upper section Mount Olympus.
