Arolsen Castle (german: Residenzschloss Arolsen) is a baroque-style ''

schloss ''Schloss'' (; pl. ''Schlösser''), formerly written ''Schloß'', is the German term for a building similar to a château, palace, or manor house. Related terms appear in several Germanic languages. In the Scandinavian languages, the cognate ...

'' in

Bad Arolsen Bad Arolsen (, until 1997 Arolsen, ''Bad'' being the German name for ''Spa'') is a small town in northern Hesse, Germany, in Waldeck-Frankenberg district. From 1655 until 1918 it served as the residence town of the Princes of Waldeck-Pyrmont and ...

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major historic cities are Dar ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. The castle is now a museum, and is still inhabited by

Wittekind, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont Wittekind Adolf Heinrich Georg-Wilhelm, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont (born 9 March 1936) has since 1967 been the head of the House of Waldeck and Pyrmont. Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh. " Burke’s Royal Families of the World: ''Volume I Europe & ...

and his family. As a result, it continues to serve as a residence of the former ruling family of the Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont. It was the birthplace of Princess

Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont (Adelheid Emma Wilhelmina Theresia; 2 August 1858 – 20 March 1934) was Queen of the Netherlands and Grand Duchess of Luxembourg as the wife of King-Grand Duke William III. An immensely popular member of the Dutch ...

, who became the

Queen consort of the Netherlands A consort of the Netherlands is a person married to a Dutch monarch during his or her reign. All female spouses of the monarchs of the Netherlands have been titled "Queen of the Netherlands" with the style ''Majesty''. The male spouses of the three ...

during the late 19th century.

History

Built during the early 18th century, the castle's main building was completed in 1728. The furnishings, equipment, furniture, remained for several decades until the castle was finally handed over to its use. Built in 1840, the ''Fürstlich Waldecksche Hofbibliothek'' (Princely Waldeck Court Library) today contains virtually all literature of the 18th century in relevant fields of knowledge. The collection focuses on the Universal

geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, an ...

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

, and

militaria Militaria, also known as military memorabilia, are military equipment which are collected for their historical significance. Such items include firearms, swords, sabres, knives, bayonets, helmets and other equipment such as uniforms, military ...

. In 1992,

Jeff Koons Jeffrey Lynn Koons (; born January 21, 1955) is an American artist recognized for his work dealing with popular culture and his sculptures depicting everyday objects, including balloon animals produced in stainless steel with mirror-Surface fi ...

created a 13-metre tall topiary sculpture called the ''

Puppy A puppy is a juvenile dog. Some puppies can weigh , while larger ones can weigh up to . All healthy puppies grow quickly after birth. A puppy's coat color may change as the puppy grows older, as is commonly seen in breeds such as the York ...

'' to be displayed at the castle's park.

Arolsen Klebeband

The library is known for its "tape" books or "klebeband" books. These are blank books that could be filled with engravings that were popular among nobility. The Arolsen books are still intact, while many others have been disassembled in the past. These have been digitised by a society created specifically for this purpose.''Die Klebebände der Fürstlich Waldeckschen Hofbibliothek Arolsen : Wissenstransfer und -transformation in der Frühen Neuzeit'', by Marie Isabelle Vogel, Peter Lang Edition, Frankfurt am Main, 2015,

References

Residenzschloss Arolsen
(German) *Eduard Brauns: Wanderungen durch Nordhessen und Waldeck. A. Bernecker Verlag Melsungen, 1971 *Grieben Reiseführer Oberhessen. Band 230, Karl Thiemig München, 1981 *Schloss Arolsen. Große Baudenkmäler Heft 147,

Deutscher Kunstverlag The Deutscher Kunstverlag (DKV) is an educational publishing house with offices in Berlin and Munich. The publisher specializes in books about art, cultural history, architecture, and historic preservation. History Deutscher Kunstverlag was fo ...

, 1980, S. 2–15, o.V.

External links

Residenzschloss Arolsen
(in German) Houses completed in 1728 Library buildings completed in 1840 Castles in Hesse House of Waldeck and Pyrmont Museums in Hesse Historic house museums in Germany Buildings and structures in Waldeck-Frankenberg 1728 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire {{Hesse-struct-stub