Carol Benesch (January 9, 1822,

Jägerndorf Krnov (; german: Jägerndorf, pl, Karniów or ''Krnów'') is a town in Bruntál District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 23,000 inhabitants. Administrative parts The town is made up of town parts of Pod Bezru ...

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise o ...

, today Krnov, Czech Republic - October 30, 1896,

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

, Romania) was a Silesian architect of

Historicism Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying their history, that is, by studying the process by which they came about. The term is widely ...

and Eclecticism orientation established in the Kingdom of Romania. He was the father of Oscar Benes (1866-1925), chief architect of Bârlad. In different documents his name is spelled ''Carl Benesch, Carol Benisch, Carl Benisch, Carol Beneș, Carl Beneș, Carol Beniș, Carl Beniș''.

Education and career

Benesch studied architecture in Vienna. Shortly after graduation he was asked by Prince Nicolae Bibescu-Brâncoveanu to come to Wallachia, where he became an architect in

. In 1865 he was nominated Chief Architect of the City of Bucharest. Benesch was founding member and first vice-president of The Architects Society in Romania (Societatea Arhitecților din România) (1891-1892).

Significant buildings

Peleș Castle Peleș Castle ( ro, Castelul Peleș ) is a Neo-Renaissance castle in the Carpathian Mountains, near Sinaia, in Prahova County, Romania, on an existing medieval route linking Transylvania and Wallachia, built between 1873 and 1914. Its inaugura ...

- Sinaia * St. Joseph's Cathedral (Catedrala Sfântul Iosif), Roman Catholic Cathedral - Bucharest - 1873-1884 * Domnița Bălașa Church - Bucharest 1885 * Brâncovenesc Hospital (Spitalul Brâncovenesc) - Bucharest 1881-1885 *

Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, Constanța The Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, Constanța ( ro, Catedrala Sfinții Apostoli Petru și Pavel din Constanţa), located at 25 Arhiepiscopiei Street, Constanța, Romania, is the seat of the Romanian Orthodox Archbishop of Tomis, as well as a ...

- 1883-1885 * Asylum Elena Doamna (Azilul Elena Doamna) - Bucharest 1862-1870 * Reconstruction of Tismana Monastery -

Gorj County Gorj County () is a county (județ) of Romania, in Oltenia, with its capital city at Târgu Jiu. ''Gorj'' comes from the Slavic ''Gor(no)-'' Jiu (“upper Jiu”), in contrast with Dolj (“lower Jiu”). Demographics In 2011, the county had a ...

- 1855 * Reconstruction of

Bistrița Monastery The Bistrița Monastery ( ro, Mănăstirea Bistrița, ) is a Romanian Orthodox monastery located 8 km west of Piatra Neamț. It was dedicated in 1402, having as original ctitor the Moldavian Voivode Alexandru cel Bun whose remains are bur ...

- Vâlcea County - 1855 * Reconstruction of Arnota Monastery - Vâlcea County - 1851 Arnota Monastery
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Awards and honors

In recognition of his personal service to the Holy See and the Church, for his works of the St. Joseph's Cathedral (Catedrala Sfântul Iosif), in 1881, Benesch was awarded by

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

with the Pontifical Equestrian

Order of St. Gregory the Great The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great ( la, Ordo Sancti Gregorii Magni; it, Ordine di San Gregorio Magno) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of ...

, Knight Commander KCSG, being named ''Carol Vallaquiensi'' (Carol of/from Wallachia). Benesch received his Romanian citizenship by decree from King

Carol I of Romania Carol I or Charles I of Romania (20 April 1839 – ), born Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, was the monarch of Romania from 1866 to his death in 1914, ruling as Prince (''Domnitor'') from 1866 to 1881, and as King from 1881 to 1914. He w ...

, who waived the usual lengthy process.

Death

Benesch died on October 30, 1896. He is buried in the Catholic wing of the

Bellu cemetery Șerban Vodă Cemetery (commonly known as Bellu Cemetery) is the largest and most famous cemetery in Bucharest, Romania. It is located on a plot of land donated to the local administration by Baron Barbu Bellu. It has been in use since 1858. T ...

in Bucharest.

Notes

References

*Paul Constantin, ''Universal Dictionary of Architects '' ''(Dicționar Universal al Arhitecților)'', București, Editura Stiințifică si Enciclopedică, 1986 p. 39.

External links

Monuments of the Old Bucharest

{{DEFAULTSORT:Benesch, Carol 1822 births 1896 deaths Romanian architects Burials at Bellu Cemetery 19th-century Romanian architects People from Krnov