Large park at the edge of the Old Town (Altstadt) covering an area of 10 ha between the Congress Palace, the Imperial Palace (Hofburg) and the Tyrolean State Theatre. The initiative for the park was taken by Archduke Ferdinand II in the 16th century, and at the time of completion it was one of the most elaborate gardens north of the Alps. It underwent transformations into a Renaissance style garden, a French formal garden, and since 1858 an English landscape garden. The garden features ponds, a playground, a palm house with 1700 species, and several restaurants and bars. Some of the plants in the park were planted by Austrian empress Maria Theresa.