Bismarck Tower (Constance)
| Bismarck Tower | |
|---|---|
 Bismarck Tower in Constance |
|
| Data | |
| place | Raiteberg Constance |
| architect | Georg Wickop |
| Construction year | 1912 |
| height | 22.8 m |
| Floor space | 49 m² |
| Coordinates | 47 ° 40 '47 " N , 9 ° 10' 50" E |
| particularities | |
| Execution in concrete construction, outer surfaces as well as wall and vault surfaces lower hall made of facing concrete with shell limestone | |
The Bismarck Tower in Konstanz with a height of 22.8 meters, the highest Bismarck Tower in the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg . It is located on the Raiteberg , 452 m above sea level. NHN lies.
Like other Bismarck towers, it was built in honor of the “founder of the empire” Otto von Bismarck and was intended to form a border monument that was visible from afar in Constance on the southern edge of the German Empire . Until 1944/45, on Bismarck's birthday on April 1st, fires were lit in the fire bowls on the roof and the pedestals. Until 2007, the Bodensee branch of the “German Amateur Radio Club e. V. “operated a network node and a mailbox in the packet radio network.
Building history
In Constance, the plan had already been made around 1890 to erect a monument in honor of Bismarck, but the plan for such a building on the Raiteberg failed for financial reasons. It was only with the donation of a larger sum for the building by Gustav Prym , owner of the Stolberger Druckknopf company William Prym GmbH & Co. KG , that the foundation for a “Bismarck Monument Foundation” could be laid. Many citizens of the city of Constance also took part in this.
Georg Wickop (1861–1914) provided the construction plans and construction progressed rapidly in 1911/12, so that the monument was inaugurated on October 18, 1912. The Bismarck Tower was built from concrete.
The entrance portal is flanked by four cylindrical columns that support a triangular gable plate framing the inscription “Bismarck”. There is a terrace in front of the entrance portal, which can be accessed via the 10 m wide staircase that extends from the spacious forecourt. There were originally also flame bowls on the two pedestals.
A bronze bust of Bismarck made by the Munich sculptor Karl Killer stands in the entrance hall. The background of the apse of the bust of Bismarck is provided with a gold mosaic in which a saying by the Greek poet Aeschylus can be read: “What should I fear, whom is not destined to die” . A Bismarck coat of arms is attached to the wall opposite the bust.
The tower is crowned by a 5.90 m high openwork tower supported by 16 simple pillars; here are also the 6 braziers.
A staircase with 106 steps leads from the entrance hall to the top viewing platform on the fifth floor of the tower. From the fourth floor, the visitor can reach this viewing platform and the access via a spiral staircase.
Image of a development proposal
Plan drawing for the development
Side view of blueprint
Sectional images at different heights
use
Even before the inauguration, Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin paid a visit there on September 25, 1912. He had contributed 1,000 marks to the total of 36,000 marks that the construction of the tower cost.
From 1913 to 1944/45 annually on Bismarck's birthday on April 1st and on the day of the summer solstice on June 21st, fires were lit in the flames. The flame bowls were fired with oil. The oil supply for the fire was ensured by a pressurized oil tank system in the basement of the building; the oil was pushed up with the help of carbon dioxide gas, the necessary cooling water with a hand pump.
From 1980 to 1997 the radio community in Konstanz rented the tower, from March 1997 to 2007 the Bodensee branch of the German Amateur Radio Club e. V. there tenants.
The current tenant, the Constance-based IT entrepreneur Gerhard Bernot, plans to set up a “time travel” museum in the tower for the development of technology and society (1899–2099).
panorama
Web links
literature
- Georg Wickop : The Bismarck Tower on the Raitheberg near Konstanz. In: Zentralblatt der Bauverwaltung . Vol. 34, No. 9, January 31, 1914, pp. 74–76, ( digital version (PDF; 1.96 MB) )