Düsseldorf casemates
The Düsseldorf casemates form a heavily frequented section of the Rhine embankment promenade in Düsseldorf 's old town . There are several restaurants with year-round outdoor catering as well as ship piers of the White Fleet Düsseldorf and the Cologne-Düsseldorfer . Before the construction of today's Rhine promenade, the term only referred to the underground vaults of a flood protection system running there, today it is understood to mean the entire row of restaurants located there, including its extensive outdoor areas.
Location and surroundings
The casemates are located on and at the lower shipyard of the Rathausufer , a quay that fortifies the banks of the Rhine in the Altstadt and Carlstadt districts . To limit the casemates in the north by a flight of steps at the Castle Square , which is also known as "Rhine stairs". In the south, the casemates end roughly at the level of Schulstrasse. They also include a passage under a bridge to the east that connects the Untere Rheinwerft with the Old Harbor . In the event of high water, this passage is closed with an aluminum wall.
history
From 1898, the bank of the Rhine was moved forward as a flood protection measure (" Rhine bank advance "). The soil material required for this came from the excavation of the port south of the Rhine knee, which was built at the same time . The result is the Untere Rheinwerft directly on the Rhine as a landing stage for shipping, as well as the Obere Rheinwerft, which is higher up and facing the city. The difference in height between the Unterer and Oberer Rheinwerft was designed by Johannes Radke with an embankment wall made of natural stone, into which parapets, candelabra- adorned pilasters , protrusions with seating, ramps, entrances to storage rooms, staircases, a level clock and, as a gastronomic attraction, the wine bar Düsselschlösschen were integrated . Radke's bank design, which was completed in time for the Düsseldorf industrial and commercial exhibition in 1902 , took up motifs from Rhine romanticism and showed eclectic forms and building materials from Art Nouveau and late historicism .
The banks of the Rhine at the Untere Rheinwerft continued to serve primarily as a cargo handling point, while the Obere Rheinwerft - parallel to Reichsstraße 1 running here - was designed as a promenade and even then was planted as an avenue with trees. The Untere Rheinwerft had underground storage facilities under the surface of the Upper Rheinwerft. These storage rooms, which resembled a vault from a fortress and are called casemates , were the forerunners of today's casemates.
During the Second World War , large parts of the Rhine promenade from the turn of the century were destroyed by air raids . During the time of the so-called economic miracle , Bundesstraße 1 , which at that time ran above ground along the banks of the old town in Düsseldorf, was expanded to four lanes according to plans by Walter Köngeter and Friedrich Tamms due to the rapidly growing car traffic. Further parts of Radke's architecture on the banks of the Rhine fell victim to this expansion, which followed the urban development model of the " car-friendly city ". The Rheinuferstraße was used by around 55,000 vehicles every day. There was hardly any connection between the old town and the banks of the Rhine; If you wanted to go to the Rhine from the old town, you had to pass the busy street. After the abandonment of the Untere Rheinwerft as a cargo handling point, the banks of the Rhine were primarily used as a parking lot for visitors to Düsseldorf's old town from the 1960s onwards. Occasionally, art exhibitions took place in the area where today's casemates are located.
In 1976 it was decided to create an underground solution for vehicle traffic in order to enable free access from the old town of Düsseldorf to the banks of the Rhine and to increase the quality of stay. As a result, the Rheinufertunnel was built from 1990 to 1993 , which, with construction costs of around half a billion euros, is considered the Düsseldorf project of the century and one of the largest traffic calming projects to date. The tunnel construction made it possible to redesign the bank of the Rhine as a pedestrian zone: the Rhine bank promenade was built over a length of around three kilometers, and the old town again bordered directly on the bank of the Rhine. The attractiveness of the banks of the Rhine for tourism and local recreation rose sharply as a result of the quality of stay that was regained in this way and attracted many visitors, which in turn led to intensive management with gastronomy and excursion boats.
While the areas for the guests of the catering establishments are outside, the kitchens and supply areas are located in the former storage rooms of the Untere Rheinwerft. You are therefore underground. Since this special feature - especially in combination with the massive historical retaining walls and stairs from the Art Nouveau era and the pedestrian tunnel - is reminiscent of casemates in fortress construction , the name casemates is still used today for this section of the Rhine promenade.
In 2012 the accessible part of the Untere Rheinwerft was fenced off over a length of around one kilometer after an accident at the quay wall facing the Rhine.
Monument protection
Since September 2, 1987 the historical flood protection systems of the Rheinwerft including their superstructures - thus also the historical components of the casemates - have been under monument protection . Interventions in the building fabric or the appearance of these facilities require a permit under monument law.
Tourism and shipping
Since the construction of the Rhine bank tunnel and the redesign of the bank of the Rhine in the 1990s, the Rhine bank promenade, next to Königsallee, has been one of the most popular promenade in the city of Düsseldorf. Its particular charm lies in the view of the Rhine, the Rhine shipping, the urban landscape and a number of Düsseldorf landmarks, including the Rhine Tower , the Castle Tower , the tower of the Lambertus Church , the Oberkasseler and the Rheinkniebrücke . The attraction of the Rhine embankment promenade soon led to phenomena of mass tourism , especially during trade fairs and other popular events, to which the casemates correspond with their gastronomic offers.
The guest area of the row of restaurants along the casemates is essentially outdoors. Most of the seats are now under elongated awning structures or under additional umbrellas. The establishments, furnished like a terrace bar , a beer garden or a beach bar, are complemented by an ice cream parlor and a fish restaurant. In total, the line has around 5,000 seats. While the casemates were initially only used for gastronomic purposes in the summer months, the offer was later expanded for year-round catering, in particular through heating and roofing measures. In this connection there were various disputes with the city administration, which had ignited due to administrative offenses and unapproved facilities. The current expansion of the ensemble includes the broadcast of football programs on large screens, the sound system with light music , the lighting with chandeliers and spotlights, the necessary technology (cabling, parabolic antennas, loudspeakers), the heating with radiant heaters, the shielding by partition walls, planters, awnings and umbrellas, advertising the facilities with colorful signs, pennants, flags and flagpoles as well as decorative materials, several counters, a stationary fire engine, exhaust chimneys, rubbish bins and two sales booths for tickets.
Between the Burgplatz and the gauge there are landing stages for the Weisse Flotte Düsseldorf for excursion boats with four ships. The fifth ship in the fleet, the Allegra , is firmly anchored and serves as a catering ship. In addition to the Düsseldorf White Fleet, the Cologne-Düsseldorfer also dock at the casemates.
Level clock
The historic gauge is located above the Weisse Flotte jetty and at Rhine kilometer 744.2. It was restored in 1996. In addition to the time of day, the current water level of the Rhine can also be read from it. The small pointer shows the meters, the big one the centimeters. Historical highs are also marked. The normal level of the Rhine at this point is 24.48 m above sea level. The level clock is a sight of the city of Düsseldorf, which is why it is popular as a photo motif and meeting point. Inside the gauge is modern technology that enables the current water level to be checked online, via radio messages and a telephone announcement. In addition to the level clock, the time can also be read from the casemates on the largest decimal clock in the world, from the points of light on the shaft of the Rhine Tower .
literature
- Oliver Karnau: Düsseldorf am Rhein - The architectural and urban redesign of the banks of the Rhine around 1900 . Grupello Verlag, Düsseldorf 2002, ISBN 3-933749-79-4
- M: AI Museum for Architecture and Engineering Art NRW (Hrsg.): Rheinuferpromenade / Rheinufertunnel in 60 years of architecture and engineering in NRW . Klartext Verlag, Essen 2007, ISBN 978-3-89861-646-1
Web links
- Website of Kasematten Düsseldorf
- Weisse Flotte Düsseldorf website
- Website for the Rheinturm Düsseldorf
- Website for the Düsseldorf level clock
Individual evidence
- ↑ Düsseldorf of the year 2013, December 11, 2013 . Website of the Rheinische Post media group. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ Rhine: flood flooded streets, January 9, 2011 . RP Online website. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ The Düsseldorf Rhine front from the north . Website of the city archive of the state capital Düsseldorf. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ Rheinuferpromenade / Mannesmannufer Düsseldorf . Website of Baukunst NRW. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ↑ Kasematten Cafés ( Memento of the original from May 31, 2014 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. . Website of the Stadtspiele Verlag. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ↑ How Düsseldorf's old town moved closer to the Rhine, April 23, 2014 . WAZ website. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ↑ The super fence on the Rhine is ready, April 2, 2012 . RP Online website. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ Entry in the list of monuments of the state capital Düsseldorf at the Institute for Monument Protection and Preservation, accessed on June 1, 2014
- ↑ Casemates . Website of the Prince of Düsseldorf. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ City hard as iron: Dense terraces, winter fun at the casemates is canceled, November 9, 2006 . RP Online website. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ "Gosch" operator had no building permit, November 8, 2011 . RP Online website. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ↑ Picture gallery: Casemates: hosts fight back . RP Online website. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ Desertion: annoyed landlord leaves Düsseldorf, August 11, 2009 . Website of the Düsseldorfer Express. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ↑ Our fleet - Weisse Flotte . White Fleet website. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ Controversy over the Düsseldorf gastronomy ship MS Allegra, April 2, 2014 . WAZ website. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ↑ Restaurant ship “Allegra” closes temporarily, March 31, 2014 ( Memento of the original from May 31, 2014 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. . Website of the Düsseldorfer Altstadt Magazin. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ↑ The current Rhine level in Düsseldorf, updated several times a day . Website of the state capital Düsseldorf. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ History in Düsseldorf: Chronicle of the city of Düsseldorf until 2002 . CL Historia website. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ↑ Water levels at levels relevant for shipping: Düsseldorf gauge, updated daily ( memento of the original from May 31, 2014 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. . Website of the Federal Electronic Waterways and Shipping Administration. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ↑ The Rhine Tower: The largest decimal clock in the world . Website of the state capital Düsseldorf. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
