Prinzregentenstraße The Prinzregentenstraße (, '' Prince-Regent Street'') in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

is one of four royal avenues and runs parallel to Maximilianstraße and begins at '' Prinz-Carl-Palais'', in the northeastern part of the Old Town. The avenue was constructed from 1891 onwards as a prime address for the

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. C ...

during the reign of Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria and is named in his honour. The square in the eastern part of the street is named ''Prinzregentenplatz''.

Architecture

In contrast to Ludwigstraße, the big boulevard of his father Ludwig I and to Maximilianstraße, the boulevard of his brother Maximilian II, Prinzregentenstraße was not planned as an administrative centre with a specially developed style; it was projected as a noble middle-class avenue. Thereby it reflects not only middle-class ideals, but was an expression of the good relation between the citizens, above all of the bourgeoisie and the educated classes, and the house of

Wittelsbach The House of Wittelsbach () is a former Bavarian dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including the Electorate of Bavaria, the Electoral Palatinate, the Electorate of Cologne, County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, ...

. At the same time Prinzregentenstraße demonstrates the prosperity about 1900. Many museums can be found along the avenue, such as the ''Bayerisches Nationalmuseum'' ( Bavarian National Museum, by Gabriel von Seidl 1894-1900), the '' Schackgalerie'' (by Max Littmann, 1907) and the '' Villa Stuck'' (1898) of

Franz von Stuck Franz Ritter von Stuck (February 23, 1863 – August 30, 1928), born Franz Stuck, was a German painter, sculptor, printmaker, and architect. Stuck was best known for his paintings of ancient mythology, receiving substantial critical acclaim with ...

which is already situated on the eastern side of the Isar river. The avenue crosses the river and circles the ''Friedensengel'' (

Angel of Peace The ''Angel of Peace'' () is a monument in the Bogenhausen district of Munich. The architects were Heinrich Düll, Georg Pezold and Max Heilmaier. Structure The ''Angel of Peace'' is part of the Maximilian Park and a ''point de vue'' at the e ...

), a monument commemorating the 25 years of peace following the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

in 1871. In 1891 the steel bridge was built as part of the Prinzregentenstraße after a draft of the architect Friedrich von Thiersch, which was financed by the Prince Regent and named after him. It was decorated by four stone sculptures which symbolized Bavaria, Swabia, Franconia and the Palatinate. In the winter the ''Prinzregentstadion'' on the eastern side serves for ice skating, for the rest of the year the stadium is transformed into an open-air swimming pool. The '' Prinzregententheater'' (by Max Littmann, 1901), an important theatre of the city, is at Prinzregentenplatz further to the east. In the easternmost part of the Prinzregentenstraße the church ''St. Gabriel'' was built in 1925–1926 by Otho Orlando Kurz and Eduard Herbert.

Third Reich

Starting with the Haus der Kunst ("House of Art"", 1933-1937 by Paul Ludwig Troost) the Prinzregentenstraße was altered by the Nazi Party, same as they did with the Brienner Straße and the Ludwigstraße to transform the royal avenues according to their ideas of a boulevard, which was always an expression of power and political significance for them. The former ''Luftgaukommando South'' opposite to the National Museum was built 1937/38 during the

Third Reich Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...

and designed by German Bestelmeyer. The three-storey central building (250 meters long) is set back from the street and today serves as Bavarian Ministry of Economy. In the east it is flanked by a five-story tower, to the west by a four-storey front building. The tower-like, elongated bunker close to St. Gabriel also belongs to the Third Reich constructions in Munich. Today it serves as ''Kunstbunker Tumulka''. Adolf Hitler's private apartment in Munich was located at 16 Prinzregentenplatz. It was his official private address and, beginning in 1929, the address in which he lived with his niece, Geli Raubal, who later committed suicide.http://www.hitlerpages.com/pagina16.html Houses of Hitler Today, Hitler's second-floor apartment houses the Munich Financing Office for the state of Bavaria and Hitler's room is currently used for storage and not open to the public.

Architecture

Third Reich

References

See also