Luisendenkmal (Gransee)
The Luisendenkmal in Gransee is a monument designed by the Prussian architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel to commemorate the laying out of Queen Luise in the city of Gransee in 1810.
history
Luise von Mecklenburg-Strelitz died on July 19, 1810 at the age of 34 at Hohenzieritz Castle and was to be finally buried in Charlottenburg, with demonstrations of sympathy from the population accompanying the transfer of the popular Queen Luise . On the night of July 25th to 26th, 1810, Luise's coffin was laid out on the then market square, today's Schinkelplatz of the city of Gransee, with great sympathy from the population. Soon afterwards, the Gransee citizenship applied to King Friedrich Wilhelm III. permission to erect a memorial for the memorable event. The king agreed, but public funds were not approved. Under the leadership of the District Administrator of the Ruppin District , Friedrich Christian Ludwig Emil von Zieten , a successful fundraising began which brought in 2,000 thalers. Ziethen had contacts with the Royal Prussian Iron Foundry in Berlin, which presumably put him in touch with Schinkel. Schinkel's submitted design for a cast iron monument was approved by the king and inaugurated on October 19, 1811.
Description of the monument
Theodor Fontane dedicated an extensive chapter in his walks to the Luisendenkmal in Gransee and describes it in detail:
This monument, the description of which we turn to below, consists of a foundation and a pedestal-like structure of stone on which a coffin rests. A canopy supported by pillars rises above this coffin, in the shape of a tabernacle. The proportions of the whole are: 23 feet high by 13 feet long and 6 feet wide. The coffin, in the form of a long box with a slanted lid, has its natural size; at the head rests a gilded crown; four lotus flowers grow up at the four corners. The inscriptions at the head and foot end read as follows: The “In memory of Queen Luise Auguste Wilhelmine Amalie of Prussia.” - “Geb. March 10, 1776, died July 19, 1810. Her corpse stood here on the night of July 25. “The inscriptions on both sides of the base are as follows. Left: "At this point we looked at her with exultation when she, the glorious, gloriously glorified with angelic joy passed by." Right: "At this point here, ah, our tears flowed when we stared at the silent procession; Oh pity, it's gone. "
The other inscriptions on the entire building are located partly on the foundation and partly on the inside of the large iron plates that form the sloping roof of the canopy. The foundation says: “From the residents of the town of Gransee, the county of Ruppin and the Priegnitz.” The large iron plates only contain a list of names, namely the names of those who have made a special contribution to the construction of this monument. They are: Joh. Friedrich Klagemann, Mayor; Karl Heinrich Borstell, chamberlain; Karl Wilhelm Metzenthin, E. Gottfried Koch, Joh. Andreas Werdermann, Johann Jakob Scheel, councilors; Johann Jakob Gentz, head of the city council; Friedrich Christian Ludwig Emil von Zieten auf Wustrau, District Administrator; Karl Friedrich Schinkel, master builder.
Artistic evaluation
The monument has enjoyed great popularity among the people throughout the ages, so it has always been maintained. Basically, Schinkel only reproduces the historical situation from 1810 in his work, a rather simple idea. However, it is not the granite plinth made of machined boulders, the replica coffin or the cast-iron crown that are important in this ensemble, but rather the extremely filigree, Gothic-looking canopy , which is reminiscent of the outlines of medieval reliquary shrines and as an expression of the memory of the dead queen becomes. It is supposed to remind of their nature: the iron as a symbol of their strength and their patriotism in the fight of Prussia against Napoleon Bonaparte , the filigree forms of their delicacy and purity. In its transcendence, Schinkel's monument has created an ingenious work of elevating the person to be remembered from being enclosed in the massive sarcophagus to the lofty height of the canopy.
literature
- Hans Kania / Hans-Herbert Möller: Karl Friedrich Schinkel - life's work. Volume 10, Berlin / Munich 1960
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Andreas Bernhard: Karl Friedrich Schinkel - Guide to his buildings. Volume II, Munich, Berlin 2008, p. 14 f.
- ^ Theodor Fontane: Walks through the Mark Brandenburg - the county of Ruppin. 1st volume 1862
- ^ Andreas Bernhard: Karl Friedrich Schinkel - Guide to his buildings. Volume II, Munich, Berlin 2008, p. 15
Coordinates: 53 ° 0 '26.93 " N , 13 ° 9' 20.12" O