Junk meal

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The shuttle
The golden rooster

The Kramer meal in Münster / Westphalia is a celebratory dinner that ties in with the medieval guild meal of Münster's merchants. It has taken place in its current form at the beginning of each year since 1956. The venue has been the ballroom of the town hall of Münster since 1959 . The focus of the event is on the exchange and contact between business people and guests from Münster's and national economic, administrative, cultural and scientific life. The organizer of the Kramer meal is the Association of the Munster Merchants' Association, which also invites you to attend. It was founded in 1835 in response to the dissolution of the guilds and guilds in the early 19th century. Since its inception, the association has been committed to the further development and attractiveness of the city of Münster under the motto “Ehr ist Dwang gnog” (honor is compulsion enough).

History of the Association of Merchants in Münster

Emergence

The founding of the association of merchants and thus the origin of the Kramer meal go back to the construction of the Krameramtshaus in 1589 on the Alten Steinweg in Münster. In this guild house, which has been preserved to this day, the members of the guilds met at regular intervals for meetings. After the guilds were dissolved in the following years, a small group of merchants from Münster acquired the house in 1824 in order to continue to represent the same interests of the merchants. The focus of the group was on the publisher and later Lord Mayor Johann Hermann Hüffer , who came up with a concept for founding an association. King Friedrich Wilhelm III. however, was skeptical of associations in which the Prussian state was not directly or indirectly involved. Therefore, the initiators of the association had to wait 14 years for approval of their project.

Development from 1835 to 1935

It was not until August 8, 1835 that the association of merchants "promoting the interests of trade in general and the merchants of the city of Münster in particular" received the necessary signature of the founding statute by the king. The board of the association comprised seven personalities from Münster, the banker Johann Heinrich von Olfers took over the management until 1853 . The association's place of assembly was initially still the Krameramtshaus, which became the property of the city of Münster in 1842. At that time, the main focus of the merchants trading in Münster was the land and sea transport routes, the damaged condition of which made successful trade difficult. Expansion and improvement of the road, rail and water network were thus significantly advanced by the association of merchants. For example, the construction of the Münster harbor and the Dortmund-Ems canal were the result of joint efforts by the association and the Münster Chamber of Commerce, which was founded in 1854. In addition to supporting economic life in Münster, the association placed another focus on promoting young commercial talent. In 1889, together with the Chamber of Commerce, he set up a school to train young businesspeople. In the mid-1920s, the association's office moved to the Prinzipalmarkt . The meeting place was the hotel "Zum König von England" on Prinzipalmarkt 5 . Due to the global economic crisis, the tasks of the association changed. In 1929, for example, he set up a trust agency to support companies in need. After celebrating its 100th anniversary in 1935, the association suspended its work for thirteen years.

Development from 1948

With the publisher Friedrich Leopold Hüffer as chairman, the Association of Merchants resumed its activities in 1948. The focus was on accompanying the reconstruction of the destroyed city of Münster as well as the future traffic concept and the construction of new apartments. The original plan of the city of Münster to rebuild the city center in a completely new structure was revised, particularly at the instigation of the association, in favor of concepts that were based on the pre-war urban structure. The historic Kaufmannsstraße Prinzipalmarkt could thus be reconstructed as a landmark of Münster. Likewise, on the initiative of the association, a committee for the reconstruction of the town hall was set up as part of the Prinzipalmarkt. Mainly due to this commitment, the town hall was completed in 1958 and handed over to the city of Münster. In 1995 the association was able to relocate its office back to the Krameramtshaus with the agreement of all those involved, in memory of its origins. This year the city handed over the house to the Westphalian Wilhelms University in order to found the “ House of the Netherlands ” culture and science center. The background to this was that during the negotiations for the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, the Krameramtshaus served the Dutch delegation as the only ambassador's quarters that have been preserved to this day. Since 1995 the annual board and board of trustees meetings of the association of merchants have taken place again in the traditional place in the fireplace room of the Krameramtshaus.

The Kramermahl since 1956

Festsaal Rathaus Munster

ceremony

With a view to this successful collaboration between the citizens of Münster to rebuild the town hall and reflecting on the old tradition, Friedrich Leopold Hüffer, chairman of the Münster Kaufmannschaft (Association of Merchants) from 1948 to 1960, invited them to the first junk meal of modern times in 1956. In connection with the gatherings of the guilds during the Hanseatic era, Hüffer's intention was to set an example for the community and to promote Münster's reputation. The venue was initially the Zwei-Löwen-Klub in Münster. After completion, the association was able to invite visitors to the rebuilt town hall for the first time in 1959, which has since been the venue for the Kramer meal. Friedrich Leopold Hüffer, who provided the inspiration for the Kramer meal in the modern era, had a decisive influence on the structure and course of the Kramer meal in its current form. For the first Kramer meal under his leadership, he suggested a reciprocal drink to the mayor at the time, Busso Peuss : As a tradition, the city of Münster held an honorary drink from the "Golden Rooster" ready for guests of honor. In 1954 the association had also acquired a valuable drinking vessel, a ship's goblet from the Munster goldsmith Melchior von Bueren from the beginning of the 17th century. According to Hüffer's ideas, the bond with the city of Münster was to be expressed with a mutual honorary drink from the ship's trophy and the Golden Rooster. Since then, reciprocal drinks of honor have been the ceremonial highlight of the meal; Both trophies will be worn by the next generation of businesspeople during the event. Likewise, since the beginning of the Kramer meal tradition of modern times, the event has been opened by the chairman with the words “An honorable businessman welcomes you!”, To which the guests respond with three “Welcome!” This tradition also goes back to Friedrich Leopold Hüffer. In the first half of the 20th century he visited the former Hansekontor in Bergen (Norway) and was greeted there by the chairman of the merchants with this saying. Further details of the ceremonial at the Kramer meal were decided in the board meeting on December 19, 1955: “Only short speeches are given and toasts are made: 1. To the German fatherland, 2. To the highly commendable merchants. 3. To the good old city of Münster. ”The menu sequence was also determined, with the merchants choosing a simple and regional menu. To this day, there is a choice of Münsterland ham on country bread or old Dutch cheese on a slice of Pumpernickel as a starter, followed by kale with Mettwurst as well as Westphalian milk with pumpernickel crumbs and cinnamon sugar as a finish. Münsteraner Pinkus beer is served with the first course , red and white wine accompany the main course. After the meal, mocha, Münsterländer Doppelkorn and tobacco are served to end the meal with a special pipe, according to tradition. Since the new law on the protection of non-smokers for North Rhine-Westphalia no longer provides for an exception for traditional events, pipe smoking has not taken place since the Kramer meal in 2014.

In contrast to the Schaffermahlzeit in Bremen, for example , women have always been allowed to attend the Kramer meal , but are still in the minority among the guests today. The guest list is limited to around 340 people due to the capacity of the ballroom in the town hall. The members of the Association of Merchants and selected other personalities are allowed to participate. The combination of tradition and topical issues have resulted in the Kramermahl gaining national recognition and being one of the most important ceremonies in the city of Münster.

Dr. Angela Merkel guest of honor at the Kramermahl 2005

Guests of honor

Initially only sporadically, since 1968 part of the tradition of the Kramer meal is the invitation of a special guest as a prominent keynote speaker. For example, Alfred Müller-Armack , the intellectual pioneer of the “social market economy” and national economist from Münster, spoke to the guests of the Kramer meal in 1964, and in 1968 Hans Berger , the then head of the Federal President's Office. A year later, Federal Chancellor Kurt Georg Kiesinger was the guest of honor. Due to the general student movements at the time, the Federal Chancellor could only reach the town hall of the university town through a side door, accompanied by loud protests. Kiesinger described these in his speech as “legitimate means of democratic freedom of expression” as long as they did not cross the threshold of brutal violence. The onset of continuous rain finally put an end to the protests and the junk meal could be continued in peace. Other guests of honor in the next few years were, for example, Ludwig Poullain in 1973 , then Chairman of the Board of Management of Westdeutsche Landesbank, in 1978 the then President of the Bundestag Karl Carstens and in 1984 Richard von Weizsäcker , then the ruling mayor of Berlin. In 2005 Angela Merkel was won as a guest of honor. With her keynote lecture “Germany 2005 - Challenges and Opportunities” she interrupted the long ranks of male keynote speakers. The guest of honor in 2013 was Martin Wansleben , General Manager of the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry. V.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Internet presence of the Association of Merchants in Münster, Kramermahl, kaufmannschaft-muenster.de , accessed on February 1, 2014.
  2. ↑ Internet presence of the Association of the Merchants' Union in Münster, kaufmannschaft-muenster.de , accessed on February 1, 2014.
  3. ↑ Internet presence of the Association of the Merchants' Union of Münster, History, Archived Copy ( Memento of the original from November 3, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 1, 2014. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.kaufmannschaft-muenster.de
  4. ↑ Bernd Haunfelder: The king was skeptical. In: Special supplement of the Westfälische Nachrichten: 175 Years of the Association of Merchants, 2010, p. 6.
  5. ↑ NN With the seal pressed ... From the royal approval, In: Special supplement of the Westfälische Nachrichten, 175 years of the association of merchants, 2010, p. 24.
  6. ↑ Bernd Haunfelder: The king was skeptical. In: Special supplement of the Westfälische Nachrichten: 175 Years of the Merchant Association, 2010, pp. 6-7.
  7. ↑ Gabriele Hillmoth: Successful namesakes. “Honoring the best” as an incentive for the trainees. A piece of appreciation. In: Special supplement of the Westfälische Nachrichten: 175 years of the merchant association. 2010, p. 8.
  8. ↑ Internet presence of the Association of the Merchants' Union of Münster, History Archived Copy ( Memento of the original from November 3, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 1, 2014. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.kaufmannschaft-muenster.de
  9. ↑ Bernd Haunfelder: The king was skeptical. In: Special supplement of the Westfälische Nachrichten: 175 Years of the Association of Merchants, 2010, p. 8.
  10. ↑ Bernd Haunfelder: The king was skeptical. In: Special supplement of the Westfälische Nachrichten: 175 years of the merchant association. 2010, p. 12.
  11. ↑ Bernd Haunfelder: Festive meal, simple menu. In: Special supplement of the Westfälische Nachrichten: 175 years of the merchant association. 2010, p. 12.
  12. ↑ Martin Kalitschke: Showpiece from the warlike times. In: Special supplement of the Westfälische Nachrichten 175 years of the association of merchants, 2010, p. 23.
  13. ↑ Bernd Haunfelder: Festive meal, simple menu. In: Special supplement of the Westfälische Nachrichten 175 years of the association of merchants, 2010, p. 12.
  14. ↑ Kramermahl: Merkel was also there. In: Münstersche Zeitung. March 6, 2008.
  15. ↑ Bernd Haunfelder: Festive meal, simple menu. In: Special supplement of the Westfälische Nachrichten: 175 Years of the Merchant Association, 2010, p. 12.
  16. ^ Bernd Haunfelder: 150 years of the Münster merchants' association from 1835–1985. 1985, p. 118.