Goethe's Lookout () is a tower located in

Karlovy Vary Karlovy Vary (; , formerly also spelled ''Carlsbad'' in English) is a spa town, spa city in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 49,000 inhabitants. It is located at the confluence of the Ohře and Teplá (river), Teplá ri ...

in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. It is considered an architectural folly and was built in the late 19th century.

History

The observation tower was built between 1888 and 1889 after

Princess Stéphanie of Belgium Princess Stéphanie Clotilde Louise Herminie Marie Charlotte of Belgium (21 May 1864 – 23 August 1945) was a Belgian royal family, Belgian princess who became Crown Princess of Austria through marriage to Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria, Crown P ...

, during a walk on the hill, expressed support for erecting a tower on the site as it was deemed suitable. Eduard Knoll, then mayor of the city, took the opportunity to follow through with the idea, which had already been expressed by the German poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. The necessary design work was entrusted to architects Ferdinand Fellner and Hermann Helmer, and following the completion of construction, the opening ceremony of the building, then called the ''Princess Stephanie's Belvedere'', took place on 21 July 1889. The site quickly became a popular destination for guests of the nearby spas, but the path was quite long and uphill, leading to plans for constructing a funicular to connect the hilltop with the spa center. Preparatory work began but was interrupted by the outbreak of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. In 2018, the building underwent significant restoration and was subsequently reopened to the public.

Origin of the name

The tower was originally called ''Kronprinzessin-Stephanie-Warte'' or '' Princess Stephanie's Belvedere''. After World War I, in honor of the writer

Adalbert Stifter Adalbert Stifter (; 23 October 1805 – 28 January 1868) was a Bohemian- Austrian writer, poet, painter, and pedagogue. He was notable for the vivid natural landscapes depicted in his writing and has long been popular in the German-speaking wo ...

, the tower was renamed ''Stifter-Warte''. Shortly after the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, it was called ''Stalinova rozhledna'' (or Stalin's Tower). During

destalinization De-Stalinization () comprised a series of political reforms in the Soviet Union after the death of long-time leader Joseph Stalin in 1953, and the thaw brought about by ascension of Nikita Khrushchev to power, and his 1956 secret speech "On t ...

, this name was also abandoned, and in 1957, the current name was chosen, dedicating the building to

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

, who had visited the Karlsbad spa several times for treatment.

Description

Goethe's Lookout is situated in an elevated position east of the city centre of

in the Czech Republic. The building is in the neogothic style, featuring exposed brickwork. The cylindrical main structure with a bay window on the rocks above the main entrance with a crenellated portico is flanked by a tall, slender tower and two rectangular prismatic buildings with reinforced corners. The structure includes an observation tower and a dining room and is characterized by romantic and neogothic style elements. The location is 639 meters above sea level. Extensive modifications were made to the building in the late 1960s, which did not substantially alter the original architecture.

Protection

The Czech Republic's heritage conservation authorities protects Goethe's Lookout as a cultural monument with catalog number 1000125882. The building is on the list of unsellable properties in the city of Karlovy Vary and was valued at 5.5 million CZK in a 1995 estimate.

References

Bibliography

*{{cite book, title=Městečka na dlani: Karlovarský kraj: Bečov nad Teplou, Boží Dar, Horní Blatná, Chyše, Krásno, Přebuz, Valeč, author=Lubomír Zeman, publisher=Foibos Books, location=Prague, year=2017, language=cs, oclc=833406206 Karlovy Vary Folly buildings Monuments and memorials in the Czech Republic Tourist attractions in the Karlovy Vary Region