The Friedrich Building, besides the Ottheinrich Building the most important palace of the castle, was built by Friedrich IV (1592-1610 who chose this site between the the Hall of Mirrors and the Frauenzimmer Building because an older building, which also contained the castle chapel, had to be pulled down on account of its delapidated condition. Thus arose the building program for the new palace: on the ground floor a new chapel, above it two residential storeys were built. The architect and most probably also the artistic creator was Johannes Schoch of Konigsbach who is also known by his magnificent Strasbourg buildings. For the first time the formal construction and the plastic ornamentation of the building are not restricted only to the courtyard side but, even though they are not so elaborate and costly as here, are also extended to the northern exterior. The creator of the sculptured decorations is Sebastian Gotz of Chur who brilliantly suceeded in fulfilling the order of the Elector to erect a stone monument to the Wittelsbacher House . A lucky chance brought together two brilliant men, Schoch the architekt and Gotz the sculptor, in this work. Compaired with the delicacy of the 40 year older Ottheinrich Building, the Friedrich Building shows to what strength and to what sureness of expression the new "antique form" had developed in the meantime on German soil.
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