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 Rez ...

– 16 June 1863 in Bad Gleichenberg, Styria) was a German-born Austrian 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 German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

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'' in 1836. From 1842 to 1845 he taught at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna 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 mov ...

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

Berlin Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...

-educated

Ignaz Wechselmann Ignaz Wechselmann (1828 in Nikolai, Prussian Silesia – January 17, 1903 in Budapest) was a Hungarian architect and philanthropist. Educated in Berlin, Wechselmann moved to Vienna, where he became the friend and assistant of the architect Ludw ...

became his friend and assistant. Förster superintended the construction of the Dohány Street Synagogue in

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 and the

Synagogue of Miskolc The Kazinczy Street Synagogue of Miskolc is the only surviving synagogue in the city of Miskolc, Hungary, and the only still functioning synagogue of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county. The synagogue was designed by Ludwig Förster and built between ...

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 Constantin ...

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 ...

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 (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 (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) * Dohány Street Synagogue,

(1854-1859) * Augarten-Casino, Brno (1855) * Leopoldstädter Tempel, 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) *

Miskolc Miskolc ( , , ; 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 fourth larges ...

, 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 es ...

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

aeiou

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