The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia - The official site provides a virtual tour and history of the museum buildings: the Baroque Winter Palace (1754-1762) designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli and the Neo-Classical Small Hermitage and Large Hermitage. Schönbrunn Palace, Austria - The official site provides photographs and brief history of the magnificent Baroque imperial palace, with visitor information. The archive of plans, images and papers will be open to the public in future. Neuschwanstein Castle - The official site of this 19th-century fantasy castle built by King Ludwig II of Bavaria includes an illustrated building history, tour and biography of Ludwig. Wonders of Az-Zahra and Other Andalusian Palaces - Essay by Dr. A. Zahoor on the extravagant pleasure palaces built in the 10th century by Islamic potentates in Spain. Schloss Laxenburg, Austria - Brief history and tour of the 18th-century former imperial palace, now the headquarters of International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis. Beijing Trip: Summer Palace - A history, description and bird's eye map of the second largest imperial garden in China. The complex includes halls, temple and pagoda built around a lake. Imperial Palaces of Petersburg - Bob Atchison provides a virtual tour of the Alexander Palace, Pavlovsk, Yelagin, Gatchina, Catherine Palace, Winter Palace and Peterhof. Part of Russian History Websites. Northwest Palace of Ashur-nasir-pal II at Nimrud - History of this Assyrian palace from Learning Sites, with a VRML model and bibliography. Palaces and Parks of Potsdam and Berlin - Description of the ensemble of palaces and parks created by the 18th and 19th-century Prussian kings and German emperors - a World Heritage site. From Cartographic Information System on European Affairs. The Royal Palace of Norway - The official site for the Norwegian monarchy provides an illustrated history and virtual guided tour of the palace in Oslo designed by Danish-born Hans Linstow (1787-1851). Palaces - Great Buildings Online gives images, information, commentary and bibliography on a selection of palaces around the world from Minoan to modern. The Topkapi Palace Museum - Bilkent University Department of History provides a history of this grandiose Ottoman palace and guide to its architectural development. Includes a bibliography. Iolani Palace - The residence of King Kalakaua and Queen Lili`uokalani, the last monarchs of Hawai`i, built 1879-82 in an "American Florentine" style. Includes history, photographs and visitor information. Beijing Service: Summer Palace - Offers an illustrated history and description this former imperial retreat in China, now a huge public park. Features a selection of its more than 3,000 buildings. Wikipedia: Potala Palace - An illustrated history and description of this impressive structure in Lhasa, Tibet, formerly the chief residence of the Dalai Lama. Wikipedia: Umaid Bhawan Palace - An illustrated description and history from the collaborative encyclopedia of India's last palace. Begun in 1929, it was designed by H. V. Lanchester in an Indo-Art-Deco style. The Hilltop Palace in the Fort of Daulatabad, India - Carl Lindquist provides an illustrated description of the Mughal pavilion on the citadel of the Fort of Daulatabad, Maharashtra, India. Includes photographs, historical chronology, and information about the fort. Esterhazy Palace - This magnificent palace in Fertod, Hungary, was begun in 1720 by Prince József Esterházy. The official site gives a history of the palace, details of exhibitions and concerts, and visitor information.