Funerary pyramid of Heinrich of Prussia

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Funerary pyramid of Prince Heinrich of Prussia

The tomb pyramid of Heinrich of Prussia is the tomb of Prince Heinrich of Prussia , which he erected himself in the form of a broken pyramid in the pleasure garden of Rheinsberg Castle.

history

In 1744 King Friedrich II gave Rheinsberg Castle to his younger brother Heinrich. Heinrich moved in with his wife Princess Wilhelmine of Hessen-Kassel in 1752 and lived there until his death. Between 1800 and 1801 he had court building officer Georg Wilhelm Steinert erect a grave in the form of a broken pyramid in which he was buried after his death in 1802. The French inscription on the walled-up entrance gate was written by Heinrich himself.

Inside the pyramid, Heinrich is buried in a pewter coffin with an inner coffin made of oak.

The shape of the pyramid with the broken tip is a replica of a wooden pyramid, the tomb of Virgil , which the building manager Karl Wilhelm Hennert erected in the palace gardens in 1771.

Although the prince had ordered the burial in a simple wooden coffin and the walling up of the pyramid in his will, he was still buried in a pewter ceremonial coffin. The inscription plate was moved to the back of the pyramid and the front was only closed by a grille so that visitors could see the coffin with a rusty helmet on top. Only after an attempted break-in into the grave was the slab moved forward again and the pyramid bricked up in 1854.

Today the pyramid belongs to the Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation Berlin-Brandenburg as part of the palace gardens .

inscription

Grave plaque on the walled-up entrance (2004)
Inscription (2018)
Original text German translation

Jetté par sa naissance dans ce tourbillon de vaine fumée
gue le vulgaire appelle
gloire et grandeur,
mais dont le sage connoit le néant;
en proie à tous les maux de l'humanité;
tourmentè par les passions des autres,
agité par les siennes;
souvent en butte à la calomnie
ou victime de l'injustice;
accablé encore
par la perte de parens chéris,
d'amis sûrs et fidéles,
mais aussi souvent consolé par l'amitié;
heureux dans le recueillement de ses pensées,
plus heureux
quand ses services purent être utiles á sa patrie
ou à l'humantié souffrante.

Tel est l'abrégé de la vie
de Frédéric Henri Louis
fils de Fréderic Guillaume I er , Roi de Prusse,
et de Sophie Dorothee, fille de George I er , Roi de la grande Bretagne.

Passerby!
Souviens toi dgue la perfection n'est point sur la terre,
si je n'ai pas été les meilleur des hommes,
au moins
ne suis-je pas au nobre des méchans!

L'eloge ou le blame
ne touchent plus celui gui repose dans l'eternité;
mais la douce espérance
embellit les derniers momens
de celui gui remplit ses devoirs;
elle m'accompagne en mourant.

né le 18 Janvier 1726.Décédé le 3 Août 1802.

Thrown from his birth into this vortex of adulation,
which the vulgar calls
fame and greatness,
but in which way the wise know nothing;
Victim of all the evils of humanity;
tormented by the passions of others,
moved by his own;
often faced with defamation
or victims of injustice;
overwhelmed again
by the loss of valued parents,
trustworthy and loyal friends,
but also often comforted by friendship;
happy in the memory of his thoughts,
and happier still
when his services have been of use to his homeland
or to suffering humanity.

This is the short version of the life
of Friedrich Heinrich Ludwig,
son of Friedrich Wilhelm I, King of Prussia,
and Sophie Dorothea, daughter of George I, King of Great Britain.

Walker!
Remember that perfection is not on earth,
even though I couldn't have been the best of men.
At least
I'm not one of the bad guys.

Praise and blame
no longer touch him who lives in eternity;
but sweet hope
beautifies the last moments of
one who fulfills his duties;
she accompanies me in death.

born on January 18, 1726.Died on August 3, 1802.

See also

Web links

Commons : Grabpyramid (Lustgarten Rheinsberg)  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Heinrich Lange : The sarcophagus of Prince Heinrich of Prussia . In: The history of Berlin (ed.): Messages of the association for the history of Berlin . 98th volume, issue 3, July 2002, p. 379–388 ( diegeschichteberlins.de [accessed on August 2, 2018]).
  2. ↑ Michael Seiler : The castle park in Rheinsberg . In: Official Guide Foundation Prussian Palaces and Gardens Berlin-Brandenburg . Potsdam 1998, p. 17, 20 .
  3. ^ Theodor Fontane : Walks through the Mark Brandenburg . 1. Volume The County of Ruppin . Berlin 1862 ( projekt-gutenberg.org [accessed on August 2, 2018]).

Coordinates: 53 ° 5 '48.8 "  N , 12 ° 53' 24.1"  E