Kaiserbahnhof Halbe
Encyclopedia
Kaiserbahnhof Halbe is a railway station on the main line between Berlin
, which begins at the Gorlitzer railway station, to Cottbus
in Brandenburg
and on to Görlitz
in Saxony
. It was built during the reign of Kaiser Wilhelm I and used by his son Emperor Frederick III
and his grandson Kaiser Wilhelm II between 1865 and 1912, when it as converted to offices and accommodation for railway workers. Having falling into disrepair in the 1990s it is now being restored to its 1865 state. Major works were completed in 2010, being the construction of a new roof and the restoration of two decorative towers at the north western and eastern corners of the building. In 2011, the first floor windows were repaired and all external brickwork repointed. In 2012, work will commence on the restoration of the ground floor windows and doors, and the restoration of the large garden, to the south of the building.
which is about 40 km southeast of Berlin. Northeast of the town is a level crossing from the main street which leads to the train station for Halbe.In parallel to the railway track about 10 meters apart from each other to the north is the Public Building and Station to the south the extraordinary and historic listed property, the Royal train station building, also known as the Royal reception building. In older sources and postcards of the station it is known as the Emperor station or is designated the Imperial Hunting Seat for the Hohenzollern family. Separate receiver stations are known in Germany as Furstenbahnhofs. Others are the Kaiserbahnhof at Potsdam, at Bad Homburg and at Kierberg.
from Görlitz
. A royal decree of 1858 smoothed the way for its construction. Bethel Henry Strousberg, the railway king of this time, formed the Berlin Goerlitz Railway Company. A cabinet order of May 1864 approved the building of the railway by Strousberg's corporation. The initial distance to Cottbus was completed in 1866, and to Goerlitz in 1867. The line's main station in Gorlitz, Berlin was designed in 1866-68 by August Orth
.
The Halbe train station on this line was used from 1866 until just before the First World War in 1912 when the building was adapted for other uses, primarily by reducing the installation of partitions and with the height of the rooms being reduced with false ceilings. Furthermore a single-storey porch was added to the structure to the south and the goods sheds to the north were extended.
The Royal reception building was designed by the renowned Berlin architect, August Orth.The building, probably a gift of the railway company to Kaiser Wilhelm I, served as the starting point for his hunts in the extensive forests surrounding Halbe. The emperor used the Royal reception building, which was administered by a house yard master, on only three occasions. It was from there that he travelled by coach to the hunting lodge: Forsthaus Hammer.
August Orth was one of the most important architects in Berlin in the second half of the 19th Century. Beside numerous churches (e.g. the 1865 Zion Church in Berlin) he was particularly famous as the architect and planner for the rapidly developing railway network. He is regarded as one the founding fathers of Berlin's metropolitan railway. From the 1860s he was the preferred architect of the railway tycoon Henry Strousberg Bethel, for which he sketched a splendid palace in 1867/68 which became known as the Palais Strousberg
at 70 Wilhelmstrasse and was the British Embassy from 1877 to 1939 and in Berlin's Wedding district the large cattle and slaughterhouse from 1868. The buildings for the Berlin Gorlitz railway, which also developed from his Strousberg connection, are an outstanding example of Orth's work. The most important building was the Gorlitz railway station (1866–68) in Berlin. This station became famous but was destroyed in World War Two. The site today comprises a small cafe in the remaining building which is open in the summer and a large park. The Royal reception building in Halbe is an important example of architect August Orth's work.
(1906).
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, which begins at the Gorlitzer railway station, to Cottbus
Cottbus
Cottbus is a city in Brandenburg, Germany, situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree. As of , its population was .- History :...
in Brandenburg
Brandenburg
Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...
and on to Görlitz
Görlitz
Görlitz is a town in Germany. It is the easternmost town in the country, located on the Lusatian Neisse River in the Bundesland of Saxony. It is opposite the Polish town of Zgorzelec, which was a part of Görlitz until 1945. Historically, Görlitz was in the region of Upper Lusatia...
in Saxony
Saxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....
. It was built during the reign of Kaiser Wilhelm I and used by his son Emperor Frederick III
Frederick III, German Emperor
Frederick III was German Emperor and King of Prussia for 99 days in 1888, the Year of the Three Emperors. Friedrich Wilhelm Nikolaus Karl known informally as Fritz, was the only son of Emperor William I and was raised in his family's tradition of military service...
and his grandson Kaiser Wilhelm II between 1865 and 1912, when it as converted to offices and accommodation for railway workers. Having falling into disrepair in the 1990s it is now being restored to its 1865 state. Major works were completed in 2010, being the construction of a new roof and the restoration of two decorative towers at the north western and eastern corners of the building. In 2011, the first floor windows were repaired and all external brickwork repointed. In 2012, work will commence on the restoration of the ground floor windows and doors, and the restoration of the large garden, to the south of the building.
Background
The Kaiserbahnhof Halbe is a receiver station of which a number were built in Germany. A receiver train station is a separate building in a train station for highly placed individuals - in this case the German emperors or kaisers. This receiver train station was built in 1865 in the town of Halbe for the exclusive use of Germany's emperors until 1912 when the station was converted to civilian residential use.There Kaiserbahnhof Halbe lies just outside the town of HalbeHalbe
Halbe is a municipality in the Dahme-Spreewald district of Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated near the capital city Berlin and the SpreewaldFour other villages are part of Halbe: Briesen/Brand with the Tropical Islands Dom, Teurow, Freidorf and Oderin....
which is about 40 km southeast of Berlin. Northeast of the town is a level crossing from the main street which leads to the train station for Halbe.In parallel to the railway track about 10 meters apart from each other to the north is the Public Building and Station to the south the extraordinary and historic listed property, the Royal train station building, also known as the Royal reception building. In older sources and postcards of the station it is known as the Emperor station or is designated the Imperial Hunting Seat for the Hohenzollern family. Separate receiver stations are known in Germany as Furstenbahnhofs. Others are the Kaiserbahnhof at Potsdam, at Bad Homburg and at Kierberg.
History
The history of Halbe station is closely linked with the development of the Prussian railway system after 1838 the first Prussian railroad track had already been opened from Berlin to Potsdam. In the following decade, almost further connections to the capital Berlin were developed. A second rapid development phase of the railway began in the 1860s. In little more than a decade the number of the tracks emanating from Berlin doubled.Cottbus-Görlitz line
The first new building of this second construction phase was the Berlin connection with CottbusCottbus
Cottbus is a city in Brandenburg, Germany, situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree. As of , its population was .- History :...
from Görlitz
Görlitz
Görlitz is a town in Germany. It is the easternmost town in the country, located on the Lusatian Neisse River in the Bundesland of Saxony. It is opposite the Polish town of Zgorzelec, which was a part of Görlitz until 1945. Historically, Görlitz was in the region of Upper Lusatia...
. A royal decree of 1858 smoothed the way for its construction. Bethel Henry Strousberg, the railway king of this time, formed the Berlin Goerlitz Railway Company. A cabinet order of May 1864 approved the building of the railway by Strousberg's corporation. The initial distance to Cottbus was completed in 1866, and to Goerlitz in 1867. The line's main station in Gorlitz, Berlin was designed in 1866-68 by August Orth
August Orth
August Friedrich Wilhelm Orth was a German architect. He was employed by the Strousberg family to provide architectural service for their private accommodation and business ventures...
.
The Halbe train station on this line was used from 1866 until just before the First World War in 1912 when the building was adapted for other uses, primarily by reducing the installation of partitions and with the height of the rooms being reduced with false ceilings. Furthermore a single-storey porch was added to the structure to the south and the goods sheds to the north were extended.
Architect
August Orth was one of the most important architects in Berlin in the second half of the 19th Century. Beside numerous churches (e.g. the 1865 Zion Church in Berlin) he was particularly famous as the architect and planner for the rapidly developing railway network. He is regarded as one the founding fathers of Berlin's metropolitan railway. From the 1860s he was the preferred architect of the railway tycoon Henry Strousberg Bethel, for which he sketched a splendid palace in 1867/68 which became known as the Palais Strousberg
Palais Strousberg
The Palais Strousberg was a large city mansion built in Berlin, Germany for the railway magnate Bethel Henry Strousberg. It was designed by the architect August Orth and built between 1867–68 at No.70 Wilhelmstraße...
at 70 Wilhelmstrasse and was the British Embassy from 1877 to 1939 and in Berlin's Wedding district the large cattle and slaughterhouse from 1868. The buildings for the Berlin Gorlitz railway, which also developed from his Strousberg connection, are an outstanding example of Orth's work. The most important building was the Gorlitz railway station (1866–68) in Berlin. This station became famous but was destroyed in World War Two. The site today comprises a small cafe in the remaining building which is open in the summer and a large park. The Royal reception building in Halbe is an important example of architect August Orth's work.
Architecture
The station reception building comprises a half-red building of exposed bricks, whose wall surfaces are highlighted with horizontal strips of yellowish clay bricks. It consists of the actual reception building adjacent to a single-storey shed goods directly to the north. The station reception building had a ticket hall, restaurant and official residence as well as other facilities. The simple decoration of the building is completed by ornaments such as round windows.Exterior
The Royal reception building is a rectangular, single-storey building of exposed red bricks with four towers and a entry extending into the large freestanding area to the east of the building. The towers each enclose five arched arcades to the free standing area to the east and to the railway tracks to the west. At the track side there were formerly two entrances. From the free standing area by the entrance there was possible use by a horse and carriage. It was crowned by an eagle carved out of red stone. As with the station reception building, the wall surfaces consist of red clay bricks laid horizontally and broken by bands of yellow clay bricks. All joints are mortared with red mortar. The straight lines and the regularity of the brickwork are emphasized by the joint line. The upper level is surrounded by a parapet wall, which incorporates the remaining windows and wall openings.Interior
The inside of the Royal reception building comprises three principal rooms with complex, magnificent painted ceilings. In the design drawings these are called 'Vestibule', 'Waiting room for the Emperor' and 'Room for the Attendants'. Finally there was a 'toilet & closet' as well as an area for the servants. With the 1912 changes, intermediate partition walls and ceilings were inserted, with the original space remaining hidden above the false ceilings. The original ceilings with their golden painted stucco with narrow ribs, staff bundles comprising oak leaves and shells are visible. A stone spiral staircase in the northeast tower gives access to the first floor. In 1912 the interior was vastly altered to convert the Kaiserbahnhof to civilian use, with the space being converted to 3 apartments, from 13 newly created rooms. There were removed in 2010, as the first stage in the restoration of the building.Halbe Station buildings
The ensemble of the station building, Royal reception building and cargo building in Halbe is unique in Brandenburg. The buildings are all important examples Prussian railway buildings in the second half of the 19th Century.Comparable royal reception buildings
The Royal reception building in Halbe documents the railway company's enthusiasm for assisting the emperor. The building is the earliest example of a building reserved for the emperor and his guests in Brandenburg. Comparable buildings are the later emperor stations in Zehdenick Neuhof (1888), Joachimsthal (1899) and PotsdamPotsdam
Potsdam is the capital city of the German federal state of Brandenburg and part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. It is situated on the River Havel, southwest of Berlin city centre....
(1906).
Restoration
Having falling into disrepair in the 1990s the Kaiserbahnhof is now being restored to its 1865 state. The initial works beginning in the summer of 2010 involve removing the 1912 additions which converted the building to three apartments, making the building watertight and connecting water, gas and power, repairing and replacing the roof, repairing and cleaning the brickwork. In 2011, the windows at the first floor level were restord, the external brickwork repointed and the two decorative north towers rebuilt. The 2012 works will focus on the ground floor. The restored Kaiserbahnhof will include a small cafe and museum. The restoration was the subject of a front page story in the Markische Allgemeine newspaper of 12 June 2010 under the title: The neue Kaiser. and in the same newspaper on 10 August 2011 under a similar title: Mister Macky ist der neue Kaiser. It has also been the subject of a story in the New Zealand Herald's Viva Magazine of 29 April 2011 under the title: At Home: The Station Master.External links
- http://www.dahme-spreewald.de/
- http://www.bldam-brandenburg.de/
- http://www.herrenhaeuser-lds.de/