Zaļenieki Manor, also called Zaļā Manor because of the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

word ''Grünhof,'' is a manor house in the

Zaļenieki Parish Zaļenieki Parish () is an administrative unit in the western part of Jelgava Municipality in the Semigallia region of Latvia. It borders the Parishes of Glūda, Svēte, Lielplatone, Vilce, Tērvete, and Augstkalne. Rivers Auce, Dorupīte, Eglon ...

Jelgava Municipality Jelgava Municipality () is a Administrative divisions of Latvia, municipality in Zemgale, Latvia. Its administrative center is Jelgava, although it is extraterritorial as the city is a separate municipality of its own. The municipality was formed ...

in the

Semigallia Semigallia is one of the Historical Latvian Lands located to the south of the Daugava and to the north of the Saule region of Samogitia. The territory is split between Latvia and Lithuania, previously inhabited by the Semigallian Baltic tri ...

region of historical region of

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

. Surrounded by a 27-hectare landscape park with ponds and lakes, it was one of the oldest properties of the

Livonian Order The Livonian Order was an autonomous branch of the Teutonic Order, formed in 1237. From 1435 to 1561 it was a member of the Livonian Confederation. History The order was formed from the remnants of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword after thei ...

in Semigallia. Its architecture enables the manor to be evaluated as the first and greatest early classical model in Courland.

History

After the collapse of the Livonian Order in 1562, the manor became property and a popular hunting spot for

Gotthard Kettler Gotthard Kettler, Duke of Courland (also ''Godert'', ''Ketteler''; ; ; ; 2 February 1517 – 17 May 1587) was the last Master of the Livonian Order from 1559 to 1561 and the first Duchy of Courland and Semigallia, Duke of Courland and Semigallia f ...

, first

Duke of Courland and Semigallia The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia was a duchy in the Baltic region, then known as Livonia, that existed from 1561 to 1569 as a nominal vassal state of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and subsequently made part of the Crown of the Polish Kingdo ...

. In 1766, Duke

Ernst Johann von Biron Ernst Johann von Biron (; ; ) was the duke of Courland and Semigallia from 1737 to 1740 and again from 1763 to 1769. He was also briefly the regent of the Russian Empire in 1740. Early years Biron was born as Ernst Johann von Bühren in Ka ...

signed the first order for the construction of the new manor. The initial architectural design is supposed to have been the work of Italian-born Russian architect

Bartolomeo Rastrelli Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli (; 1700 – 29 April 1771) was an Italian architect who worked mainly in Russia. He developed an easily recognizable style of Late Baroque, both sumptuous and majestic. His major works, including the Winter Palace ...

, who died in 1771 before completion of the project. Construction began in 1768 and finished in 1775 under the supervision of Rastrelli's Danish-born assistant Severin Jensen, which explains the influence of both Late

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

and

Classicism Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aesthe ...

architecture in the completed manor house. In 1795, when the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia was incorporated into the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

, the Russian Emperor

Paul I Paul I may refer to: *Paul of Samosata (200–275), Bishop of Antioch *Paul I of Constantinople (died c. 350), Archbishop of Constantinople *Pope Paul I (700–767) *Paul I Šubić of Bribir (c. 1245–1312), Ban of Croatia and Lord of Bosnia *Paul ...

gave Zaļenieki Manor and all the estate to his brother-in-law Alexander of Württemberg. In 1850 his sons sold the property to the landlord of Bornsminde Manor Alexis von Scheping. His wife Aleksandra Lieven of Mežotne, after her husband's death, passed the estate over to the hands of the

Baltic-German Baltic Germans ( or , later ) are ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their resettlement in 1945 after the end of World War II, Baltic Germans have drastically decli ...

Count Karl Theodor von Medem of Eleja at the end of the nineteenth century. After the Latvian agrarian reforms in 1920, the building was nationalized and turned into a vocational secondary school, which continues in operation as of today. Restoration work under the new stucco layers in the hall and several other rooms on the second floor revealed wall paintings. The facade of the Zaļenieki Manor has not undergone any major changes since the eighteenth century. However, the interior of the manor was redesigned and refitted from 1866 to 1868. The complex used to consist of more than 30 buildings, including

stables A stable is a building in which working animals are kept, especially horses or oxen. The building is usually divided into stalls, and may include storage for equipment and feed. Styles There are many different types of stables in use tod ...

and accommodation for the servants.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zalenieki Manor Manor houses in Semigallia Bartolomeo Rastrelli buildings Jelgava Municipality

History

See also

References

External links