Ludwig Christian Friedrich (von) Förster (8 October 1797 in

Ansbach Ansbach (; ; East Franconian: ''Anschba'') is a city in the German state of Bavaria. It is the capital of the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Ansbach is southwest of Nuremberg and north of Munich, on the river Fränkische Rezat, a ...

– 16 June 1863 in

Bad Gleichenberg Bad Gleichenberg is a municipality in the district of Südoststeiermark in the Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It ...

Styria Styria (german: Steiermark ; Serbo-Croatian and sl, ; hu, Stájerország) is a state (''Bundesland'') in the southeast of Austria. With an area of , Styria is the second largest state of Austria, after Lower Austria. Styria is bordered to ...

) was a German-born

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

architect. While he was not Jewish, he is known for building Jewish synagogues and churches. Ludwig Förster studied in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

and

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. He founded the ''

Allgemeine Bauzeitung The ''Allgemeine Bauzeitung'' was founded in 1836 by the architect Ludwig Förster and was the most important architectural publication of the Austrian monarchy. The magazine was based in Vienna. It was shut down in 1918. See also List of magazin ...

'' in 1836. From 1842 to 1845 he taught at the

Academy of Fine Arts Vienna The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien) is a public art school in Vienna, Austria. History The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna was founded in 1692 as a private academy modelled on the Accademia di Sa ...

and influenced a generation of Viennese architects through his architectural studio. From 1839/40 he worked as a freelance architect,

Otto Wagner Otto Koloman Wagner (; 13 July 1841 – 11 April 1918) was an Austrian architect, furniture designer and urban planner. He was a leading member of the Vienna Secession movement of architecture, founded in 1897, and the broader Art Nouveau move ...

, among others, was a member of his studio. 1846–52 Förster worked with his son-in-law

Theophil Freiherr von Hansen Baron Theophil Edvard von Hansen (; original Danish name: Theophilus Hansen ; 13 July 1813 – 17 February 1891) was a Danish architect who later became an Austrian citizen. He became particularly well known for his buildings and structures in ...

. He contributed to the

Ringstraße The Vienna Ring Road (german: Ringstraße, lit. ''ring road'') is a 5.3 km (3.3 mi) circular grand boulevard that serves as a ring road around the historic Innere Stadt (Inner Town) district of Vienna, Austria. The road is located on sites where ...

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 ...

-educated Ignaz Wechselmann became his friend and assistant. Förster superintended the construction of the

Dohány Street Synagogue The Dohány Street Synagogue ( hu, Dohány utcai zsinagóga / nagy zsinagóga; he, בית הכנסת הגדול של בודפשט, ''Bet ha-Knesset ha-Gadol shel Budapesht''), also known as the ''Great Synagogue'' or ''Tabakgasse Synagogue'', ...

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

, which along with the

Leopoldstädter Tempel The Leopoldstädter Tempel was the largest synagogue of Vienna, in the district (Bezirk) of Leopoldstadt. It was also known as the Israelitische Bethaus in der Wiener Vorstadt Leopoldstadt. It was built in 1858 in a Moorish Revival style by the ...

and the Synagogue of Miskolc is his most important work. Forster and Hansen designed the structure - the largest synagogue in Europe - based on

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

Moorish The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or se ...

style as shown features such as the polychromic building with onion domes and arched gates. 1861–63 he was a member of the Viennese city council (''Gemeinderat''). Förster's sons, Heinrich and Emil, were also architects. The latter worked for his father and then for the government, completing the renovation of the Hofburg and Burgtheater.

Notable works

* Theater Reduta, Bürgerhäuser,

Brno Brno ( , ; german: Brünn ) is a city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava and Svratka rivers, Brno has about 380,000 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in the Czech Republic ...

(1831) * Evangelische Kirche

Gumpendorf Mariahilf (; Central Bavarian: ''Mariahüf'') is the 6th municipal district of Vienna, Austria (german: 6. Bezirk). It is near the center of Vienna and was established as a district in 1850. Mariahilf is a heavily populated urban area with many re ...

(1849) * Villa Pereira,

Königstetten Königstetten is a municipality in the district of Tulln in the Austrian state of Lower Austria Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the nine states of Austria, located in t ...

(1849) *

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

(1849-1856) * Maria-Hilf-Kirche,

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

(1854) *

(1854-1859) * Augarten-Casino,

(1855) *

, Vienna (1858) * Elisabethbrücke,

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

(1858, demolished 1897) * Synagogue of Miskolc,

Miskolc Miskolc ( , , ; Czech language, Czech and sk, Miškovec; german: Mischkolz; yi, script=Latn, Mishkoltz; ro, Mișcolț) is a city in northeastern Hungary, known for its heavy industry. With a population of 161,265 (1 Jan 2014) Miskolc is the ...

, 1863 *

Palais Todesco ''Palais Todesco'' is a ''Ringstraßenpalais'' in Vienna, Austria, constructed from 1861 to 1864 on plans by architect Theophil Hansen. It was built for the aristocratic family. One of the inhabitants was Baroness Sophie von Todesco, who establ ...

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

(1863)

References

External links

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ÖBL
Austrian architects Synagogue architecture Austrian people of German descent People from Ansbach 1797 births 1863 deaths Academics of the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna {{Jewish-hist-stub