Mainz City Park
The city park is one of two larger gardens in Mainz and is located between the old town and upper town .
history
When it was founded, the area of today's city park was at the gates of the city, right in front of the Neutor. The area had already been used as a garden during the electoral era. Until it was destroyed during the siege of Mainz in 1793, the Mainz pleasure palace of the Electors of Mainz was located here. From 1793 the area was devastated and stone remains that were still there were used in particular for construction work in Kastel during the French affiliation . The execution of Schinderhannes and his gang members in 1803, who were guillotined there , also took place on the grounds of today's city park .
Between 1819 and 1825, the Mainz landscape architect Peter Wolf (1770–1833) designed a new facility in the style of an English landscape park for the unused area between Fort Kartaus and the banks of the Rhine opposite the mouth of the Main . A marble bust next to the bird house on the upper main path recalls Wolf as the “steward of this facility”.
The scope and the original design are no longer completely preserved, as parts of the site were repeatedly cut off for other purposes, such as the expansion of the Ludwig Railway and the installation of the first gas works, in the 1850s . The new facility from 1820 overgrown. It was not until 1888 that the Siesmayer brothers , who had previously also designed the Frankfurt Palmengarten , gave the park its current face.
For the 2000th city anniversary in 1962, the city park was redesigned again. The flower houses, a bird house and a reading and resting yard were built. A baroque statue of Hercules and the torso of the river god Rhenus were re-erected from the old Favorite gardens . In 2006 the city park was placed under monument protection.
present
Larger lawns alternate with old trees and perennials or alternating plantings. There are also numerous paths criss-crossing the park. In the middle of the upper part of the park there is an older fountain system with a rectangular basin. At the western entrance there is a flower clock and a smaller, circular water basin with a water fountain. The figure of the father Rhine (today as a copy), which formerly belonged to the fountain on Tritonplatz, was placed in the immediate vicinity.
rose Garden
A rose garden based on plans by the Nierstein garden architect August Waltenberg was created in 1925 from a rose show on the occasion of the Rhineland's millennium . At the same time it was the 1st rose show of the Association of German Rose Friends . This falls out of the concept of the English garden and contains around 7,500 roses on an area of 9,500 square meters . During the Mainz wine market , an artists' market takes place here, followed by the area for the sparkling wine festival. The ensemble is complemented by a small antiquarian book market.
Some circular trees planted in the rose garden are supposed to remind of the place of the execution of the " Schinderhannes " in the year 1803.
Animal facilities in the city park
Before the Palm House was ceded by the city of Mainz to the hotelier Barth to expand a hotel building, birds, various types of fish and reptiles could be seen in bird cages, terrariums and aquariums since the 1960s.
There are other animal facilities in the park's open-air area, which are operated by the municipal green office. The birdhouse from the 1960s with its outdoor aviaries at the transition to the Volkspark has been preserved. It was renovated in winter 2013/2014. The main attraction of this show house are the real macaws ( parrots ). Ten species of birds with around 100 animals live in the bird house.
In the summer months, flamingos inhabit a large pond in the lower part of the park. Right next to it is a petting gate with West African dwarf goats .
Ecological importance
The Volkspark , which was created on the occasion of the German Viticulture Congress (August 24 to September 1, 1963), is located directly next to the grounds of the city park . The green belt of Mainz, which is based on the old ramparts of the fortress , connects to the southwest . These areas form the “ green lung ” for the old town and upper town.
Events
“This graceful, tasteful connection of park and garden rises long from the bank of the old, venerable Rhine, opposite the point where the Main flows gently into the great river. Once you have reached the highest peak, an imposing, picturesque view opens up to the eye. The river of world history meanders in gentle curves before our eyes; beautiful Mainz rises in awe-inspiring majesty with its mighty cathedral; The Taunus Mountains spread out in front of us, on whose mountains the lush, rich corridors of Nassau, the picturesque Biebrich Castle and the other romantic villages in the vicinity. The Rhine bridge, the numerous multi-masted ships, the lively hustle and bustle in the port of Mainz make the foreground even more attractive. Up the Rhine begins the proud Palatinate rich in vines and in the southeastern distance our view extends to the Bergstrasse. - Every Friday afternoon the happy, beautiful world of Mainz rushes to this favorite place of the people of Mainz in order to enjoy not only the enjoyment of the great outdoors but also the art of music. On the named day, the most selected harmonies of Austrian and Prussian military music are performed alternately under God's open sky. One delights in this enjoyment of art, in an informal, free, fine conversation, in the infinite rides that Lenz has brought, and in many lovely blossoms of human beauty, which Mainz is known to be so rich in. What is missing here to give these cheerful people a few happy hours? These interesting Friday amusements have now started again ... "
The Mainz Wine Market has been held in the Stadtpark on two weekends at the end of August / beginning of September since 1984 .
The rifle fountain in the city park commemorates the eleventh German federal shooting in Mainz in June 1894.
literature
- Bernd Blisch : From courtly pleasure to civil relaxation. On the history of the Favorite and the city park in Mainz. In: Hedwig Brüchert (Ed.): From the electoral baroque garden to the city park. The Mainz favorite through the ages. Friends of the City History Museum Mainz e. V., Mainz 2009. ISSN 1868-3177
- Svetlana Timoshkina: Welfare effects and recreational use of public green using the example of the city parks in Mainz. Dissertation in the Geosciences Department of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, 2001
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Redevelopment of the rose garden. Green Office of the City of Mainz, accessed on March 15, 2014 .
- ^ Roof renovation of the bird house in the city park. Green Office of the City of Mainz, archived from the original on February 12, 2015 ; accessed on March 15, 2014 .
Coordinates: 49 ° 59 ′ 22 ″ N , 8 ° 17 ′ 17 ″ E