Ernst Friedrich Zwirner was an architect born at Jakobswalde otlarniain

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

in 1802, he died at

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

in 1861. He studied in Breslau and

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, and worked at the latter place under

Karl Friedrich Schinkel Karl Friedrich Schinkel (13 March 1781 – 9 October 1841) was a Prussian architect, city planner and painter who also designed furniture and stage sets. Schinkel was one of the most prominent architects of Germany and designed both neoclassica ...

. From 1833 he was the leading architect of the

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

at Cologne which was to be completed. At Cologne, he was next to

Vincenz Statz Vincenz Statz (9 April 1819, Cologne – † 21 August 1898, Cologne) was a Neo-Gothic German architect, mainly active in the Rhineland The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ...

the most important practical representative of

Gothic Revival architecture Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

. From the time it was recognized that the completion of the great cathedral at Cologne was the task which would bring the highest honour to the

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

style, so Schinkel's school was drawn on for men to carry out the work, first Friedrich Adolf Ahlert, and after his death, Zwirner being called to Cologne. Before long more confidence was placed in Zwirner than had been given to his predecessor, because he showed a more perceptive grasp of the work of the old masters. After the work of restoration was finished, he presented his plans for the completion of the structure in 1841 to King

Frederick William IV Frederick William IV (german: Friedrich Wilhelm IV.; 15 October 17952 January 1861), the eldest son and successor of Frederick William III of Prussia, reigned as King of Prussia from 7 June 1840 to his death on 2 January 1861. Also referred to ...

; upon the approval of the plans the work began the next year. However, neither Zwirner nor his able successor Karl Eduard Richard Voigtel, who completed the work, succeeded in uniting the charm of free play of imagination with technical correctness and architectural sequence. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that Zwirner was one of the finest judges of the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

style. What he had learned from his work on the cathedral of Cologne he used in designs of his own with the same fine skill and energy. His best building is probably the church of St. Apollinaris at Remagen, to which, however, the same objection of monotony of plan has been made. He also built a church at

Mülheim Mülheim, officially Mülheim an der Ruhr () and also described as ''"City on the River"'', is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. It is located in the Ruhr Area between Duisburg, Essen, Oberhausen and Ratingen. It is home to many compan ...

on the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

, and one at

Elberfeld Elberfeld is a municipal subdivision of the German city of Wuppertal; it was an independent town until 1929. History The first official mentioning of the geographic area on the banks of today's Wupper River as "''elverfelde''" was in a docu ...

. He restored the

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

of Argenfels on the Rhine, built the castle of Herdringen in the style of the ancient

fortress A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

castles on the Rhine for Count von Fürstenberg, and also the

Moyland Castle Moyland Castle (german: Schloss Moyland) is a moated castle in Bedburg-Hau in the district of Kleve, one of the most important neo-Gothic buildings in North Rhine-Westphalia. Its name derives from the Dutch word Mooiland which means "beautiful ...

near

Cleves Kleve (; traditional en, Cleves ; nl, Kleef; french: Clèves; es, Cléveris; la, Clivia; Low Rhenish: ''Kleff'') is a town in the Lower Rhine region of northwestern Germany near the Dutch border and the River Rhine. From the 11th century ...

. He designed a mausoleum for the family of Count Ernst Zur Lippe-Biesterfeld on the grounds of the Klosterruine Heisterbach near Königswinter, and built the Rathaus (Town Hall) in Kolberg,

Pomerania Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...

.''Northern Germany'', by Karl Baedeker, Leipzig, 1904, p.159. His last work was the magnificent, 1861

Moorish Revival Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of Romanticist Orientalism. It reached the height of its popularity after the mid-19th centur ...

Glockengasse Synagogue at Cologne. He is buried in the

Melaten-Friedhof Melaten is the central cemetery of Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, which was first mentioned in 1243. It was developed to a large park, holding the graves of notable residents. Name The name "Melaten" refers to a hospital for the sick and l ...

. Ernst Friedrich Zwirner's Tombstone at Melaten cemetery in Cologne

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zwirner, Ernst Friedrich 1802 births 1861 deaths 19th-century German architects