It was commissioned by Prince Andrey Kyrillovich Razumovsky as a magnificent Neoclassic embassy worthy of the representative of Alexander I, at the prince's own expense, in Landstraße, quite close to the city, and filled it with antiquities and modern works of art . On New Year's Eve 1814, the prince held a glittering ball with the new Tsar Nicholas I as guest of honour. Probably the only person in Vienna who was invited but did not go, was Beethoven. To accommodate the guests, Razumovsky erected a temporary ballroom extension, heated by a flue from the palace. After all the guests had gone, the flue caught fire, setting the ballroom ablaze and burning out roomfuls of art in the palace. Rasumovsky, though he was raised to Prince the following year, was never the same. He lived in seclusion in Vienna until his death in 1836.


Text Source: Wikipedia