Hans von Cranach

The Cranach monument below the Wartburg (2009)

Hans Karl Lukas von Cranach (born January 7, 1855 in Stargard in Pomerania , † October 18, 1929 in Eisenach ) was a Prussian major , orderly officer of the Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach , Carl-Alexander and castle captain of the Wartburg .

biography

Hans was the eldest of three sons of the Prussian government councilor Adolf von Cranach (1823-1896) and his wife Johanna, née Mampe (* 1827). He spent his childhood in Frankfurt (Oder) and attended the Wilhelmgymnasium in Berlin, where he passed the Abitur. Then he joined the infantry regiment "Grand Duke of Saxony" (5th Thuringian) No. 94 of the Prussian Army on September 25, 1875 as a flag boy . He had been stationed in Weimar since 1876 and was promoted to secondary lieutenant in February 1877. Here he met the Grand Duke of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach and was assigned to him as an orderly officer from October 1, 1879. Cranach, who was a direct descendant of the Renaissance painter Lucas Cranach the Elder , became the Grand Duke's companion and advisor on his study trips to other European countries.

During the frequent stays at the Wartburg, Cranach came into close contact with the leading architect Hugo von Ritgen , who was entrusted with the restoration of the castle, and the then castle captain Bernhard von Arnswald .

Left in his command as the Grand Duke's orderly officer, Cranach was transferred on foot to the 3rd Guards Regiment on August 28, 1884 . On September 30, 1884 he was released from his command and served in the regiment. As a prime lieutenant he graduated from the War Academy from October 1, 1887 to October 19, 1889 , then took leave to travel to Switzerland and Italy . After his return, Cranach was assigned to the secondary budget of the General Staff for a year and was promoted to superfluous captain in mid-November 1890 . From March 22, 1891 to March 31, 1894 he served as a company commander . Then Cranach was again commanded to service the Grand Duke of Saxony.

Cranach received on 18 November 1894 his farewell with the statutory board , succeeding the late in February 1894 Castle captain of Arnswald on. He had already started his service at the Wartburg on April 4, 1894 (the service at the Wartburg was still under military authority at that time) and lasted 35 years. In the meantime he had on 22 April 1899 position to the disposition of the character as a major condition.

Cranach was an ideal cast, he had the confidence of the Weimar court.

The main structural focal points of his work at the Wartburg were the decoration of the Elisabeth bower, the new hotel building (1912) and the redesign of the outdoor facilities ("Minnegarten", "Elisabethplan", network of paths around the castle). He recognized the importance of journalism and relied on the picture postcard, which was popular as an advertising medium at the time, and which brought the romantic image of the Wartburg all over the world in over 100 motifs. With his help, high-quality art guides and illustrated books about the Wartburg were published. The album of the Wartburg armory has a special value here, as this weapon collection was carried off to the Soviet Union as art treasure and booty after the Second World War .

Cranach had a particular talent for embellishing the numerous festivals and events at the Wartburg with operetta-like costumes . Every year he had the honor and the burden of preparing a visit by the German Emperor Wilhelm II to the Wartburg.

Even after the First World War, Cranach remained captain of the Wartburg castle; thanks to his reputation , he held this position for life. After the abdication of the last Grand Duke of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach, a decision had to be made about the further fate of the Wartburg and the art collections there. Cranach was one of the initiators of the Wartburg Foundation , which is still responsible for the administration of the Wartburg .

He was also a co-founder of the Thuringian Museum and the Reuter Wagner Museum . Below the Wartburg, the Cranach monument commemorates his work.

After his death, he was bid farewell in a moving funeral service at the Wartburg, and the urn was buried in the family grave in Berlin.

Honors

On the occasion of his 30th service anniversary, Cranach was honored with a commemorative medal specially created for him.

Others

His emblem and motto is: "The more faithful - the more comforted".

literature

• Rosemarie Domagala: The Oberburghauptmann Hans Lukas von Cranach. 7 January 1855 to 18 October 1929 . In: Wartburg Foundation (Hrsg.): Wartburg year book . tape 1995 . Gotha Druck, Wechmar 1996, p. 137-148 .
• Alfons Diener-Schönberg: "The weapons of the Wartburg" (based on photographs by Hans Lucas von Cranach). Historical publishing house Baumgärtel, Berlin 1912
• Grand Duchy of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach, Eisenach district, Wartburg . In: Georg Voss (Hrsg.): Architectural and art monuments of Thuringia. tape 41 . Jena 1917.
• Max Baumgärtel (Ed.): The Wartburg. A monument to German history and art . Berlin 1907.
• NN: Letters to Hans Lucas von Cranach . In: Friends of the Wartburg (ed.): Wartburg yearbook (old series) . tape 2 . Verlag der Freunde der Wartburg, Eisenach 1924, p. 58 .
• Werner Kahle: (Obituary) in the annual report . In: Friends of the Wartburg (ed.): Wartburg yearbook (old series) . Verlag der Freunde der Wartburg, Eisenach 1930, p. 68-70 .
• List of officers of the Royal Prussian 3rd Guard Regiment on foot. From 1860 to 1910. Verlag Gerhard Stalling, Oldenburg 1910, p. 36.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Genealogical pocket book of the knights and Noble families. Fifth year, Brno 1880, p. 83.
2. ↑ Günther Schuchardt: On the history of the Wartburg Foundation Eisenach. Part 1 (1922-1960) . In: Wartburg Foundation (Hrsg.): Wartburg yearbook . tape 1993 . Kranichborn Verlag, Leipzig 1994, ISBN 3-930040-07-7 , p. 158 .