Welcome to the Königsstuhl (Royal Chair)

The Royal Chair or Königsstuhl is a reminder of the period from the 14th century to 1806, when the German Kings were designated by the seven electors.
The four Rhineland electors met for the first time in 1273 in Rhens on the banks of the Rhine. At that time, they decided to elect Rudolf of Habsburg as German King. The first royal election in Rhens was held in 1346 when Charles IV was elected. He was also the one who had the Königsstuhl built as a meeting place on the banks of the Rhine between 1376 and 1397. In 1400, King Ruprecht III of the Palatinate was elected on the newly erected Königsstuhl. Subsequently, the royal election was moved to Frankfurt and those elected only came to the Royal Chair on the way to the coronation in Aachen to swear their oath of allegiance and present themselves to the people. This custom was also discontinued in the 16th century.
The Königsstuhl was destroyed in 1801. With support of King Frederick William IV, it was rebuilt on the Rhine in a modified form. The memorial was moved to its current location in 1929.
The Rhineland-Palatinate State Administration renovated the monument from 1979 to 1982 and added the state’s coat of arms.