German Royal Palaces, Castles and Homes

[dmitri]

Yes there was splendour but nothing compared to that of the Russian Empire. The Kingdom of Prussia was quite drab by comparison and the 2nd German Empire didn't even have a Crown in existence. At least the Kingdom of Prussia had a crown. By comparison with the glittering Imperial Russian Crown it was fairly insignificant.

[HerrKaiser]

Not having a crown for the second empire was by purposeful design. Bismarck and william I as well as Fritz all wanted the newly formed German empire to be essentially what has come to be the latter 20th century european union. they envisioned a more commercial/capitalist and integrated empire than one with the trappings of classic monarchal dynasties. Bismarck specifically felt this approach would both engage the populous and help break down national barriers to trade, commerce, and political divisions.

I know it is true that the Russian royal infrastructure was far more widespread and grand, but it still seems less diverse with less variety of styles and treatments. Just an opinion.

[dmitri]

Bismarck, Wilehelm I and the later Friedrich III all had different opinions about the German Reich. For Bismarck it was a power grab through military means, Wilhelm I really didn't want to be German Emperor at all and Friedrich III had ideas about what it could have been. 

[Joanna]

My apologies if posted but search did not reveal link. Berlin Stadtschloss historical photographs/plans c1935:

Plan:
http://www.berliner-stadtschloss.de/bilder/Grundriss%20Stadtschloss_r.jpg
Exteriors:
http://www.berliner-stadtschloss.de/bilder/Portal%201%20Stadtschloss%20Titelblatt_r.jpg
http://www.berliner-stadtschloss.de/bilder/SchlueterhofvonSWAbb%202_r.jpg

http://www.berliner-stadtschloss.de/raeume.html

Joanna

[Lucien]

Alphabetical listing of Palaces and gardens.

http://www.spsg.de/index_3280_en.html

Frohe Weihnachten:

http://www.spsg.de/index.php?id=6643

http://www.spsg.de/index_6459_de.html

[brnbg aka: liljones1968]

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click on images for larger versions

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Cecilie, 1908 by Caspar Ritter

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Wilhelm, 1932 & Cecilie, 1934  both by B. Zickendraht

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during construction, summer, 1914


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[brnbg aka: liljones1968]

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[gleb]

Thank you very much Brian!

Any idea where the two bathrooms were? I mean the blue and the pink ones.

[perfecciona]

Thank you for the photos and the floor plans; I hadn't seen floor plans of this palace before.

[Madame-Sisi]

my brother is living in berlin and in a week im going to potsdam and also 2 berlin..
but now i want to know does anyone know stories about hauntings in the palaces or other royal/imperial places in and around Berlin and Potsdam??

just curious hehe...

[Lucien]

The opening of the Christmas market will be on monday the 23rd,Charlottenburg Palace:

http://www.spsg.de/index.php?id=7632

[Norbert]

Yes there was splendour but nothing compared to that of the Russian Empire. The Kingdom of Prussia was quite drab by comparison and the 2nd German Empire didn't even have a Crown in existence. At least the Kingdom of Prussia had a crown. By comparison with the glittering Imperial Russian Crown it was fairly insignificant.

The German Imperial Crown is one of the most venerable and historic royal ornaments in Europe. The last Imperial coronation was at Frankfurt 14 July 1792 and looking at contemporary illustrations  this thousand year old ceremony was as magnificent as anything in Moscow . From 1871 there were repeated requests for its return from Vienna and its design was adopted for heraldic purposes by the 2nd German Empire. The crown is a magnificent work of art and is steeped in mystical symbolism and it's possession meant that the holder was the  rightful elected German King . In 1872 models were created for an Imperial crown which were displayed in the Schloss Monbijou but lost after 1945 However Berlin always hoped for the real thing which is why the Nazi government removed it to Nuremberg in 1938. Interesting to contemplate that Friedrich III seriously considered adopting the regnal numbering of the German Kings as Friedrich IV


 

[HerrKaiser]

Your points are correct, Norbert. And, the splendor of Prussian/German royal lifestyles being referred to as "...nothing in comparison to that of the Russian Empire" is subjectively very debateable.

While many of the Romanov palaces, for example, were more brightly painted on the exterior and had byzantine turets that many feel are exemplory of grandeur, surely the Potsdam palaces, the Stadt Schloss in Berlin, Charlottenburg, etc, are equal or more splendid that those of
Russia. True, the exteriors of most of the German palaces lacked color, but the baroque architecture of most and a the details of the designs make touring the regal haunts of Germany a far more lengthy and intriquing tour than those of Russia, France or England.

[Adagietto]

There's an interesting series on the BBC at the moment about the history of Berlin; it showed film of the remains Schloss being blown up by the Communist authorities, who also banished the equestrian statue of old Fritz, but later brought him back again! Two Berliners were shown expressing oppposing views on whether the Schloss should be reconstructed. In fact, it would be nothing more than a facade, I can't really see the point in rebuilding it (since it wouldn't be rebuilt in any real sense). A bit about Schinkel, who is one of my favourite architects. I saw his theatre at Aachen recently, or at least the facade of it, which is all that survives.

[HerrKaiser]

The "rebuilding" of the Stadt Schloss has been bounced back and forth from approval to unapproval to rethinking, etc, for many years now. The post WWII dedicated effort to change the face of Germany in all aspects--architecture, social standards, business standards, politics, military, etc--has led to conflicts of opinion that painfully slow the wheels of progress.

The value of having the facade of the Stadt Schloss rebuilt is to re-enrich the character of the location for both historical and beautification reasons. The building was a jewel of baroque design and a worthy "museum" piece for all future generations to enjoy. Most of the average person sees of urban landscapes are the building exteriors; so what is on the inside has only very limited visibility for the masses. Hence, the exterior shell, reconstructed in original detail would be a good thing for Berlin and the world, imo. It would also integrate very nicely with the brand new, and reconstructed, museum island nearby.