Location: Zwickau Map
Constructed: first castle build in the 13th century
Osterstein Castle or Schloss Osterstein is a medieval mansion that stands in Zwickau in German state of Saxony. The name of Osterstein Castle or Schloss Osterstein is translated as a Castle of an Easter Stone. The first castle on this place was constructed in the 13th century. However it was demolished in 1407 by troops of William I, Margrave of Meissen. The ruins of the stronghold were later incorporated into a new Renaissance Mansion that was constructed in 1587- 90 by Christian I, Elector of Saxony. The castle was turned into a Nazi Concentration Camp during World War II. In the end of the 20th century abandoned and dilapidated building was reconstructed and open as a retirement house.
In its function as a town castle, the former Niederungsburg was
only a few dozen meters away from the Zwickauer Mulde in the
north-eastern area of the old town of Zwickau. A pronounced moat
and high walls, which still existed into the 19th century, suggest
that the castle was originally designed as a moated castle.
History
The construction of the first fortified smaller complex
is scheduled for the end of the 12th or beginning of the 13th
century. First mentioned in documents as Castrum Czwickaw in 1292,
the castle was expanded into a margravial castle in the 13th and
14th centuries.
In the devastating city fire in 1403, the
castle was also badly damaged, demolished between 1404 and 1407 and
rebuilt as a better fortified complex under Margrave Wilhelm I of
Meissen. During the reign of Johann the Steadfast (1525–1532), the
Zwickau mint, which had been closed since 1493, was temporarily set
up in the city palace and continued to operate between 1530 and
1533. Johann used the castle complex from 1517 to 1518 as a ducal
alternative residence, as the plague raged in Weimar at that time.
In Zwickau, known as an early center of the Reformation, Martin
Luther is said to have preached here in the castle in 1522. The name
Schloss Weißenstein was in use until the end of the 16th century.
Under Elector Christian I, the palace complex was converted into
a splendid Renaissance palace from December 1586 between 1587 and
1590 according to plans by the master builder Hans Irmisch. When it
was converted into a Renaissance castle, the name Osterstein became
common. Only 40 years later, as a result of the Thirty Years' War in
1632, the castle was so badly devastated that it remained
uninhabited for 30 years.
Towards the end of the 18th
century, the castle was converted into a penal institution
(1770–1775), later the Zwickau prison, which was used with
interruptions until after the Second World War. From 1860 to 1864
another cell house was built in the shape of a cross. Numerous
prominent prisoners were held here, including Karl May, August
Bebel, Rosa Luxemburg and Martin Hoop. During the Nazi era in 1933 a
so-called protective custody camp (concentration camp), it was used
as a prison until 1945. During the GDR period, u. a. Again,
dissidents arrested. On December 31, 1962, after 187 years, the
“tradition” of the castle as a penal institution ended.
From
then on it housed u. a. in a later added intermediate wing on
Dr.-Friedrichs-Ring a washing facility. The former stuff house and
cell house served as an archive for a hard coal company and as a
magazine for a wide range of companies in the city. Parts of the
facility were demolished.
From the 1980s the castle fell into
disrepair. In the period from 1990 to after 2000, new usage concepts
and restoration projects repeatedly failed. The buildings
deteriorated more and more and became the eyesore of the
northeastern city center. After that, emergency safety measures had
to be carried out. The cell house complex was demolished in the
mid-1990s.
Present and current use
Towards the end of
2000, the Friends of Osterstein Castle was formed with the support
of the city to support the rescue of the complex with a fundraising
campaign from 2004 onwards. Further emergency measures from winter
2000 to summer 2001 z. B. an emergency covering of the roofs and
installation of an auxiliary steel structure for the renaissance
roof truss of the south wing saved the building from complete
disintegration. This saved the rest of the historical structure from
demolition.
The financial security of the project was finally
achieved through the provision of half public federal and state
funds for monument protection and half the participation of a major
investor. Five years after the building permit, the foundation stone
was laid on November 3, 2006 for the restoration and reconstruction
of the castle. The work was carried out by construction and
handicraft companies from the region, who carried out the often
difficult tasks with commitment in order to convert the building
complex into a social facility. Since then, the castle has offered
apartments for assisted living. Later, parts of the castle, such as
the originally preserved cloister vault, were to be used for
gastronomy and museums (the Mauritius Schloss Schenke was opened in
the cloister vault on October 8, 2016). The topping-out ceremony
took place on September 9, 2007. Almost a year later on November
7th, 2008, the keys could be handed over to the operating company
Senioren- und Seniorenpflegeheim non-profit GmbH Zwickau. The first
residents moved in on November 11, 2008.
The Great Court Room
Thanks to the renovation of the castle,
the “Great Court Room” of Osterstein Castle is one of the best
preserved court rooms (also called Dürnitz) from the Renaissance in
Saxony. For a long time it was only used as a utility room and was
disturbed by a variety of fixtures. After the renovation, it was
restored in an excellent way from the point of view of monument
protection. With a floor space of around 175 m2, it is the largest
room in the 16th century in Osterstein Castle that has been
preserved in its original form. Written sources report that dining
was served at 20 tables at the same time. The building description
of the “Große Hofstube” is a stately vaulted hall with two aisles
and three bays, the appearance of which is particularly
characterized by the two strong Tuscan columns made of Cainsdorf
sandstone.