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rheinsbergOranienburg, once one of the most beautiful palaces in Brandenburg, had a lot of bad luck. It was sold by the Hohenzollern in 1802, then eventually there was a chemical manufacturer inside for most the 19th century, by which time all the paintings on the ceilings and wall decorations except for one were done for, and in the 20th century, the SS used it as a horse stable. Crowning of the indignity, in the final days of WW II they blew up a nearby bridge, so the palace really was in shambles. Which is why today it's not called "Schloss Oranienburg" but "Schlossmuseum Oranienburg": the restoration did the best it could, but there are limits. With this in mind, here we go.
First, a model of how it used to look like. Oranienburg was founded by a Dutch princess (obviously), Luise Henriette, the wife of the Great Elector of Brandenburg. Her son Friedrich I. used to regularly, but Friedrich Wilhelm the austere had it locked up. After his ascension to the throne, Fritz gave it to younger brother and new crown prince August Wilhelm, who used it as a summer residence and eventually died there.
Oranienburg, the street side. The statue in front shows Luise Henriette the Electress:
Now have a look from the surrounding park, which today is used by families and schools; there's a school next door, in fact:
The Orangerie is the only building from AW's time with intact walls that did not have to be rebuild:
Into the former palace. The sole ceiling and room surviving both chemists and the SS:
Room 21 was AW's bedroom and the place of his death at 36 years of age. Medically of a variety of reasons (blood in the brain, fever, all this was later diagnosed), but his contemporaries saw it as a death due to a broken heart, and it remained the radioactive core poisoning family relationships ever since.
The guy on horseback is AW; next to the door is a portrait of young Heinrich by Pesne.
Antechambre; you're looking at a portrait of AW:
This is where most of the around 30 people present during that night would have been waiting.
Schönhausen, the palace where Frederich's unwanted wife Elisabeth Christine lived, and her chamberlain Lehndorff worked, had a somewhat better fate. Though it, too, was (ab)used by the Nazis - in this case, to store all the "degenerate art" paintings they stole or blackmailed from the rightful owners before they were sold off expensively abroad. After WWII, it became until the 1960s the residence of the GDR head of state. Afterwards, it was turned into the official guest house for state visitors to the GDR - like Meseberg for the Federal Republic. All of which means it is far better preserved, though not on a scale with Rheinsberg, let alone Sanssouci. Have a look.
Note Elisabeth Christine's initials:
The staircase is stylish:
How EC got through town if she wasn't taking a carriage:
One of the reception rooms with a portrait of EC in her old age:
Middle aged:
Our favorite diariest, depicted here in the year 1761:
The antechambre, where Lehndorff and the courtiers went through a lot of coffee drinking (with their sugar stolen) and card cames:
The portraits here - mostly Pesne and his students - show various court ladies:
In case you're wondering how a lute then looked like:
Sophie von Pannewitz, soon to be Sophie von Voss. AW fell in love with her, but as he didn't get permission to divorce, she married Herr von Voss from Magdeburg. Later, she returned to court; she was holding EC's hand when the Queen died (years after Fritz, btw). Like Lehndorff, she kept diaries, and her diaries go until the Napoleonic era.
The costume she's wearing:
ECs cabinet. Those profiles are Fritz portraits. The lower one, by his architect Knobelsdorff during the Rheinsberg days, was her favourite and she kept it with her till she died. (EC: Rococo version of the Faithful Griselda.)
Several times during the 7 Years War, the court got evacuated from Berlin and Potsdam to Magdeburg. This painting shows the courtiers in Magdeburg on one such occasion.
Another antechambre with partially preserved wallpaper:
The big ball room. In the very early GDR days, the central committee used to meet here.
Note the details which I love:
Total change of era: the office of the head of state (not head of government) of the GDR until the 1960s:
ECs bedroom, then used for female state visitors:
And thus concludes our tour through Schönhausen. Yet to come: Sanssouci! (Where Elisabeth Christine only visited once, during the war, when her husband was not there.)
First, a model of how it used to look like. Oranienburg was founded by a Dutch princess (obviously), Luise Henriette, the wife of the Great Elector of Brandenburg. Her son Friedrich I. used to regularly, but Friedrich Wilhelm the austere had it locked up. After his ascension to the throne, Fritz gave it to younger brother and new crown prince August Wilhelm, who used it as a summer residence and eventually died there.
Oranienburg, the street side. The statue in front shows Luise Henriette the Electress:
Now have a look from the surrounding park, which today is used by families and schools; there's a school next door, in fact:
The Orangerie is the only building from AW's time with intact walls that did not have to be rebuild:
Into the former palace. The sole ceiling and room surviving both chemists and the SS:
Room 21 was AW's bedroom and the place of his death at 36 years of age. Medically of a variety of reasons (blood in the brain, fever, all this was later diagnosed), but his contemporaries saw it as a death due to a broken heart, and it remained the radioactive core poisoning family relationships ever since.
The guy on horseback is AW; next to the door is a portrait of young Heinrich by Pesne.
Antechambre; you're looking at a portrait of AW:
This is where most of the around 30 people present during that night would have been waiting.
Schönhausen, the palace where Frederich's unwanted wife Elisabeth Christine lived, and her chamberlain Lehndorff worked, had a somewhat better fate. Though it, too, was (ab)used by the Nazis - in this case, to store all the "degenerate art" paintings they stole or blackmailed from the rightful owners before they were sold off expensively abroad. After WWII, it became until the 1960s the residence of the GDR head of state. Afterwards, it was turned into the official guest house for state visitors to the GDR - like Meseberg for the Federal Republic. All of which means it is far better preserved, though not on a scale with Rheinsberg, let alone Sanssouci. Have a look.
Note Elisabeth Christine's initials:
The staircase is stylish:
How EC got through town if she wasn't taking a carriage:
One of the reception rooms with a portrait of EC in her old age:
Middle aged:
Our favorite diariest, depicted here in the year 1761:
The antechambre, where Lehndorff and the courtiers went through a lot of coffee drinking (with their sugar stolen) and card cames:
The portraits here - mostly Pesne and his students - show various court ladies:
In case you're wondering how a lute then looked like:
Sophie von Pannewitz, soon to be Sophie von Voss. AW fell in love with her, but as he didn't get permission to divorce, she married Herr von Voss from Magdeburg. Later, she returned to court; she was holding EC's hand when the Queen died (years after Fritz, btw). Like Lehndorff, she kept diaries, and her diaries go until the Napoleonic era.
The costume she's wearing:
ECs cabinet. Those profiles are Fritz portraits. The lower one, by his architect Knobelsdorff during the Rheinsberg days, was her favourite and she kept it with her till she died. (EC: Rococo version of the Faithful Griselda.)
Several times during the 7 Years War, the court got evacuated from Berlin and Potsdam to Magdeburg. This painting shows the courtiers in Magdeburg on one such occasion.
Another antechambre with partially preserved wallpaper:
The big ball room. In the very early GDR days, the central committee used to meet here.
Note the details which I love:
Total change of era: the office of the head of state (not head of government) of the GDR until the 1960s:
ECs bedroom, then used for female state visitors:
And thus concludes our tour through Schönhausen. Yet to come: Sanssouci! (Where Elisabeth Christine only visited once, during the war, when her husband was not there.)
no subject
Date: 2020-08-15 04:25 am (UTC)And of course the lovely Lehndorff picture :D
no subject
Date: 2020-08-15 10:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-08-15 06:18 pm (UTC)That is a stylish staircase! I like it.
Lehndorff! (Lol at historical research via on-site portraits. :D)
The antechambre, where Lehndorff and the courtiers went through a lot of coffee drinking (with their sugar stolen)
Still funny!
no subject
Date: 2020-08-16 10:58 am (UTC)And look at Lehndorff providing you with an answer to your question - in style!
no subject
Date: 2020-08-16 05:39 pm (UTC)I had the same thought!
And look at Lehndorff providing you with an answer to your question - in style!
Thank you, friendly and helpful ghost of Lehndorff! (I can see why he and Peter Keith got along.)