Landhaus Klagenfurt, Renaissance government building in Klagenfurt, Austria

Landhaus Klagenfurt is a Renaissance government building set between Heiligengeistplatz and Alter Platz, arranged in a horseshoe around a paved courtyard. Two square towers with clock faces and green copper onion domes flank a central wing with a ground-level arcade of rounded arches. Inside, the Wappensaal holds 665 coats of arms of Carinthian noble families, painted by Josef Ferdinand Fromiller between 1740 and 1760.

The Carinthian Estates built the Landhaus between 1574 and 1594 to replace a decayed ducal castle, on the site of an earlier castle. Hans Freymann from Bleiburg began the work in 1574; Johann Anton Verda, an architect from Lake Lugano, succeeded him in 1581. The building has housed the Carinthian Landtag ever since.

The halls inside display coats of arms belonging to Carinthian noble families on their walls, showing how local power was organized centuries ago. You can see these symbols of regional identity still hanging there today.

The building is centrally located between two public squares in the old town and is easy to reach on foot. It currently houses the regional parliament, so visitors should check whether public tours are available and when.

In the Großer Wappensaal, 665 coats of arms of Carinthian noble families cover the walls, painted between 1740 and 1760 by the local artist Josef Ferdinand Fromiller. The hall also holds the Fürstenstein, an Ionic column capital used in the enthronement of the dukes of Carinthia.