Jagdschloss Kranichstein
Hunting lodge, a palace, now museum and hotel, in Darmstadt, Germany
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jagdschloss Kranichstein is a palace in Kranichstein, now part of Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany. It was built north of Darmstadt from 1578 as a Jagdschloss, a hunting lodge for George I, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt. It served also as a summer residence. In 1917, it became a museum of hunting. From 1946, it was the first location of the Darmstädter Ferienkurse.
- Schloss Kranichstein
- Kranichstein Hunting Lodge
The estate is one of few remaining Baroque hunting lodges in Germany, referred to also as Kranichstein Hunting Lodge.[1] It serves as a hunting museum, and as a hotel with restaurant and event location including for weddings.
History
Jagdschloss Kranichstein was built on a commission from George I, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt by his master builder Jakob Kesselhuth as a palace with three wings.[2][3] Transformation of a former agricultural estate to a courtly palace began in 1578[3] and was completed in 1580.[4] His successors, Ernest Louis and Louis VIII, held events such as Parforcejagd, expanding the buildings towards more representation and elegance.[2][3] The estate was used for hunting by the landgraves for more than 350 years.[3]
From 1863, Louis IV, the later Grand Duke of Hesse, and his wife Alice, a daughter of Queen Victoria, used the property temporarily as their residence, and in the following years as their summer residence.[1] Queen Victoria visited the palace as a summer guest several times.[3]
The estate became a museum in 1917, when Ernest Louis collected all hunting weapons from his palaces and hunting lodges at this location.[2][5] It was installed by Kuno von Hardenberg.[3][4]
It became the venue of the Darmstädter Ferienkurse, courses for contemporary music from 1946.[6] In 1952, the Stiftung Hessischer Jägerhof foundation acquired the estate.[7] In the same year, the museum was reopened,[2] with a focus on the Baroque period. The palace was restored from 1988 to 1996 by the state, Darmstadt and the foundation, restoring the Renaissance version of the first floor.[4] The estate has been used as a hotel, with a wedding venue from the end of the 20th century. In 2008, the museum bioversum in the Jagdzeughaus was opened.[8] It deals with biodiversity and invasive species.[8]
Literature
- Peter Engels: 600 Jahre Kranichstein, in: Sechste Sommerspiele Jagdschloß Kranichstein, Darmstadt 1999
- Kuno Graf von Hardenberg: Das Jagdschloß Kranichstein und die Jagdmaler des Landgräflichen Hofes zu Darmstadt, Darmstadt 1918
- Eberhard Lohmann: Landgraf Georg I. und die Anfänge von Schloß Kranichstein, Darmstadt 2002
- Iris Reepen: Museum Jagdschloss Kranichstein, Deutscher Kunstverlag München/Berlin 2002 ISBN 3-422-06351-X
- H. Retzlaff: Kranichstein. Renaissanceschloß und Jagdmuseum bei Darmstadt, Darmstadt 1961
- Gisela Siebert: Jagdhäuser der Landgrafen von Hessen-Darmstadt auf Bildern des 18. und 19. Jahrhunderts, Darmstadt 2001
- Wolfgang Weitz: Jagdwaffen aus dem Jagdmuseum Schloß Kranichstein, in: Museumsblätter Niddaer Heimatmuseum, Nidda 1990
- Bettina Clausmeyer-Ewers: Wildpark und Schlossgarten Kranichstein, Deutscher Kunstverlag (DKV), 2006
