Circus Louis Knie
The Austrian National Circus Louis Knie was an Austrian circus . The founder, Louis Knie Senior, comes from the Knie circus dynasty, which was founded in 1806 .
The founders of the Swiss National Circus Knie , the German Circus Charles Knie and the Austrian Circus Louis Knie junior also come from the Knie dynasty .
history
Friedrich Knie (senior) was the personal physician of Empress Maria Theresa in the Danube Monarchy . In 1784 his son Friedrich was born in Erfurt . Friedrich (1784–1850) is considered to be the founder of the Knie circus dynasty. Like his father, Friedrich wanted to be a doctor. However, in 1803 he broke off his medical studies. He was so enthusiastic about the performances of an equestrian troupe that he wanted to go with them.
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As early as 1806 he founded an independent artist group with acrobats and his own horses. Under the name of the “Viennese tightrope dance troupe”, they performed with their uncovered arena in the countries of the Danube Monarchy , Bavaria , Baden , Prussia and Switzerland . In Innsbruck he married Antonia Stauffer (1786–1833) in 1807. Karl (1813–1860) took over the management of their five children. He married Anastasia Maria Staudinger (1808–1881). They had seven children, of which Ludwig (1842–1909) took over the management. He married Marie Heim (1858–1936). Ludwig was often and happily with his troupe for performances in Switzerland. The native of Vienna applied for the Swiss Citizen Letter . On December 26, 1900, he was naturalized with his wife and their five children in the municipality of Gerlikon -Gachnang, in the canton of Thurgau . The third and fourth generation of the artist family Knie emigrated to Switzerland.
National Circus Louis Knie
Only in 1993 did a member of the sixth and seventh generation return to Austria. Due to a violent dispute with the relatives in 1993, Louis Knie sen. (* 1951) The family business and Switzerland at the end of the year. He goes to Austria with his wife Germaine (* 1948) and son Louis (* 1974). With considerable financial support from his relatives, he can acquire the Austrian National Circus Elfi Althoff-Jacobi . In 1993 the circus celebrated its 20th anniversary under the direction of Elfi Althoff-Jacobi. The anniversary season was also the big farewell tour. In 1994 the new Austrian National Circus Louis Knie started its first tour through Austria. Son Louis has been an important part of the program since the start of the tour with his own horse training in the circus.
Attack on the circus
On July 3, 2000, during a guest performance in Linz, the tent as well as some cars and cars were partially badly damaged by incendiary devices. Again and again the performances were interrupted by protesting animal rights activists. The circus was accused of cruelty to animals. Demonstrations with around 40 activists each followed daily. Often there were fistfights between demonstrators and circus staff. The escalations led to the process. The Verein gegen Tierfabriken (VgT) advocated a general ban on wild animals in circuses. Since Knie did not reimburse legal fees from a lost trial against VgT, the association filed for bankruptcy against the Circus.
After a few unpleasant years, operations had to be stopped in August 2005 for financial reasons. The circus was pledged with the naming rights to the St. Veiter Raiffeisen district bank.
Change of ownership
In September 2005 the German entrepreneur Rolf Krames acquired the circus and the naming rights. Director Rolf Krames and his manager Frank Schiffermann offered a completely new program with star artists from various countries. A show of the extra class was offered. Accompanied by live music from a circus orchestra.
During a guest performance in Klagenfurt, the director received threatening phone calls. He was attacked and his car was hit with an iron bar.
The quality of the program deteriorated. The number of visitors fell. After the summer break in 2008, the orchestra was reduced from five to two musicians. Material and tent showed signs of wear.
After the 2009 season, operations were closed. According to the website, the Austrian National Circus Louis Knie has been without a program since 2010.
Web links
References and comments
- ↑ History of the Knie dynasty ( Memento of the original from March 29, 2015 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. (PDF)
- ↑ Family tree of the Knie dynasty ( Memento of the original from March 29, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Gerlikon is now part of the Frauenfeld community
- ^ Austrian National Circus
- ↑ Attack on Circus Knie , accessed on March 23, 2015.
- ↑ The Deep Fall of Louis Knie , accessed March 17, 2015
- ↑ Circus World reports for 2008 . Retrieved March 23, 2015
- ^ Attack on the ringmaster Kronen Zeitung, report from August 13, 2008. Accessed April 20, 2015
- ↑ Circusworld report of November 30, 2008. Accessed April 20, 2015
