Villa Hammerschmidt became the official residence of the German President in 1951. In 1994, as part of the relocation of the German capital from Bonn to Berlin, the then German President Richard von Weizsäcker made Schloss Bellevue in Berlin his primary official residence. Since that time the Hammerschmidt Villa has served as a secondary residence. In German, the Villa is also called "White House of Germany", because it looks similar to the residence of the US President.
The villa is situated in the heart of the former government district of Bonn, bordering the river Rhine to the north and opposite the zoological Museum Koenig to the south. It is also adjacent to the secondary official residence of the German Chancellor, the Palais Schaumburg, to the west.
The upper floor of the building houses a private apartment for the German President while the ground floor consists of state rooms which are used for ceremonial purposes.
Villa Hammerschmidt was built by August Dieckhoff in 1860 in neo-classical style, as a stately home for a wealthy industrialist. It was redecorated in 1868 by the architect Otto Penner.
Since its construction Villa Hammerschmidt has been owned by: