Göhrde Hunting Lodge
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Göhrde hunting lodge () is a former hunting lodge in
Göhrde Göhrde is a municipality in the district of Lüchow-Dannenberg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The municipality was named after the Göhrde State Forest, which has an area of about , famous for its oaks, beeches and game preserves. The Göhrde Hunt ...
,
Lower Saxony Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...
in
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. The Göhrde State Forest was once a favourite hunting ground of the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg. Later the kings of
Hannover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...
also hunted here and – to 1918 – the German emperors as well. As
Elector of Hanover The Electorate of Hanover ( or simply ''Kurhannover'') was an electorate of the Holy Roman Empire located in northwestern Germany that arose from the Principality of Calenberg. Although formally known as the Electorate of Brunswick-Lünebur ...
, king
George I of Great Britain George I (George Louis; ; 28 May 1660 – 11 June 1727) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 1 August 1714 and ruler of the Electorate of Hanover within the Holy Roman Empire from 23 January 1698 until his death in 1727. ...
(1660–1727) built a
baroque style The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from the early 17th century until the 1750s. It followed Renaissance art and Mannerism and preceded the Rococo (i ...
palace here between 1706 and 1709 by the architects
Louis Remy de la Fosse Louis Remy de la Fosse ( 1659–1726) was a French architect during the Baroque period, who worked primarily in Germany. Career Until 1705, he was draftsman in the studio of master builder Johann Friedrich Eosander in Berlin. From 1706 to 1709, ...
and Johann Christian Böhm. The palace was timber framed and in bad repair by the early 19th century. In 1827, it was taken down. The German Emperors redeveloped the former stables in a new hunting lodge. After the
First World War 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 ...
, the hunting lodge served as a seminary and school. Today, it is privately owned and in poor condition. Almost nothing remains of the 18th-century splendour.


History


Royal hunting lodge for King George I

The Göhrde forests are located near the
Elbe The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper Sorbian, Upper and , ) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Ge ...
river between
Lüneburg Lüneburg, officially the Hanseatic City of Lüneburg and also known in English as Lunenburg, is a town in the German Bundesland (Germany), state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of another Hanseatic League, Hanseatic city, Hambur ...
and Dannenberg. The forests were a favourite hunting ground of the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg, and later Electors of Hanover. Already as of 16th century, there was a hunting lodge. King George I was a passionate hunter. It was said that he ‘had no other pleasure but the hunt’. In 1706, he decided to expand the existing infrastructure: the existing lodge was to be replaced by a new palace. In addition, various new outbuildings were added as well, such as new stables, a theatre, a bakery and an abattoir. Construction costed 83,000 talers and it was the king's most elaborate and major construction project. The palace designs were made by the court architect Louis Remy de la Fosse, with assistance of Johann Christian Böhm.Michael Rohde: ''Der Weifengarten. Vom barocken Adelsgarten und öffentlichen Landschaftspark zum „Hochschulpark“.'' In Marieanne von König (Hrsg.): ''Herrenhausen : die Königlichen Gärten in Hannover'', Göttingen: Wallstein-Verlag, 2006, ISBN 978-3-8353-0053-8 und ISBN 3-8353-0053-9, hier: S. 251–264; hier: S. 251f.
online
Construction started in 1706 and was completed in 1710. The palace was a compact three story building and slightly lower side wings, which contained at least 48 apartments to accommodate guests. Ancestral portraits from
Henry the Lion Henry the Lion (; 1129/1131 – 6 August 1195), also known as Henry III, Duke of Saxony (ruled 1142-1180) and Henry XII, Duke of Bavaria (ruled 1156-1180), was a member of the Welf dynasty. Henry was one of the most powerful German princes of ...
(1129/1131-1195) onwards decorated the palace walls. The royal stables could house more than 500 horses. In addition, there were also dog kennels. The hunting lodge in Göhrde was the scene of large ‘par force’ hunts. These were grand theatrical events, meticulously planned to demonstrate power and greatness. King George I and his guests participated in the hunt, or positioned themselves centrally in the forest while they waited to be summoned. Meanwhile, the mounted hunters and their hounds pursued the day's quarry. From their waiting place, the king and his guests could watch the hunters, horses and hounds as they persecuted the frantic stag at great speed. When the exhausted stag was no longer able to run, the dogs held it fast by biting its throat, ears, legs and muzzle. Thus, the stag was “fixed” and the king was summoned with a special horn signal. He carried out his duty as the master of the hunt by killing the stag with a stab wound to the heart. With the accession of king George to the throne of the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
in 1714, the
Personal union of Great Britain and Hanover The personal union between Great Britain and Hanover existed from 1714 to 1837. During this time, the Elector of Braunschweig-Lüneburg or King of Hanover was also King of Great Britain. With the Act of Settlement in 1701, the English Parliamen ...
started. The king relocated to London and the large hunting parties in Göhrde were reduced to a few events, but they were still there. The king liked to go from time to time to Hanover. In 1725, king George I entertained king
Frederick William I of Prussia Frederick William I (; 14 August 1688 – 31 May 1740), known as the Soldier King (), was King in Prussia and Elector of Brandenburg from 1713 until his death in 1740, as well as Prince of Neuchâtel. Born in Berlin, he was raised by the Hugu ...
(1688–1740) at Göhrde.


Gallery: The Göhrde palace in the time of King George I – around 1715

File: Göhrde Jagdschloss von Nordosten 1715.jpg, The palace from the northeast File: Göhrde Jagdschloss von Sudwesten 1715.jpg, The palace from the southwest File: Göhrde Jagdschloss von Sudosten 1715.jpg, The palace from the southeast File: Göhrde Jagdschloss von Nordwesten 1715.jpg, The palace from the northwest File: Göhrde Jagdschloss im Hintergrund 1715.jpg, Deer with the palace in the back File: Göhrde Jagdschloss von weit gesehen 1715.jpg, Deer with the palace in the back


Second half of the 18th century

Between 1756 and 1765, Benjamin Hase drew various site plans of the palace complex, which are preserved in the British Map Library. Although Göhrde remained a royal hunting property from 1766 onwards, it was no longer used for hunting when king
George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...
(1738–1820) ordered the hunting rights in Göhrde to be leased, but no lessee was found. The palace also remained unused and was left to decay. In 1772, the exiled Danish queen Caroline Matilda (1751–1775) used the castle as a temporary residence before moving into
Celle Castle Celle Castle () or, less commonly, Celle Palace, in the German town of Celle in Lower Saxony, was one of the residences of the House of Brunswick-Lüneburg. This quadrangular building is the largest castle in the southern Lüneburg Heath reg ...
, where she died only 23 years old.


19th century

The timber framed palace was in bad repair by the early 19th century. In 1827, king
George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...
(1762–1830) decided to take down the palace. The salvageable material was auctioned off, covering about 10 percent of the original construction cost. Only the large royal stable and a
Cavalier house A cavaliers' house or cavalier house (from "cavalier" meaning horseman or cavalryman) was a building that formed part of the ensemble of a stately home, palace or ''schloss'' and was used to accommodate the royal or princely household. They emer ...
were repaired to serve occasional hunting purposes. It was not until the return of a new king to Hanover, Ernest Augustus (1771–1851), in 1837 that the place revived. Ownership of the property passed to the German emperor
William I William I may refer to: Kings * William the Conqueror (–1087), also known as William I, King of England * William I of Sicily (died 1166) * William I of Scotland (died 1214), known as William the Lion * William I of the Netherlands and Luxembour ...
(1797–1888) in 1866, who carried out some major renovations and expansions. The former stables were turned into a new hunting lodge, which could serve as a new centre of hunting parties. The last major imperial hunt took place here in 1913 with a large party attended by emperor
Wilhelm II Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia from 1888 until Abdication of Wilhelm II, his abdication in 1918, which marked the end of the German Empire as well as th ...
(1859–1941).''Das Vermächtnis der kaiserlichen Jagd.''
In: ''Landeszeitung für die Lüneburger Heide'', 21. Oktober 2013.


20th century

After the First World War, the palace served as a recreation home for civil servants, and from 1929 as a seminary for vicars of the Hanoverian State Church. In 1939, the contract with the State Church was terminated; the church should no longer benefit from state institutions. Thus, the vicars had to move to the existing seminary in Loccum in 1940. The hunting lodge was now intended to be used as a National Socialist educational institution for female teachers. This did not happen, and after 1946, the building became an educational centre (. Among other events, the 23rd meeting of
Group 47 Gruppe 47 (Group 47) was a group of participants in German writers' meetings, invited by Hans Werner Richter between 1947 and 1967. The meetings served the dual goals of literary criticism as well as the promotion of young, unknown authors. In a ...
took place here in October 1961 with the author and poet
Hans Magnus Enzensberger Hans Magnus Enzensberger (11 November 1929 – 24 November 2022) was a German author, poet, translator, and editor. He also wrote under the pseudonyms Andreas Thalmayr, Elisabeth Ambras, Linda Quilt and Giorgio Pellizzi. Enzensberger was regarde ...
as the speaker.


Modern times

In 1997, the Lüneburg (region) declared the hunting lodge as state-owned property dispensable, which was confirmed by the Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture. Due to reasons of prudent financial management, the sale of the property, which was in need of renovation, became necessary. After years without a buyer, the listed castle complex was sold at the end of 2005 to private owner for 30,000 euros. This also transferred the obligation to preserve the castle as a cultural monument, as contained in the Lower Saxony Monument Protection Act, to the buyer. After the sale, there was a dispute over the use due to unclear ownership.Dirk Drazewski, Angelika Blank
''Räumung: Aus für Bildungszentrum Göhrde.''
In: ''Wendland-net.de'', 27. August 2008
Today, it is privately owned and in poor condition and deteriorating. During winter, the buildings are not heated, due to cost saving reasons. The owner does not allow local authorities and conservationists to enter the property, so they are not able to assess what the current status is.


References


Further reading

* * * * * * * * *


External links

* {{coord, 53.14048, 10.87667, format=dms, type:landmark_region:DE, display=title Former palaces in Germany George I of Great Britain Hunting lodges Palaces in Lower Saxony Royal Hanoverian Residences Timber framed buildings in Germany