Uninhabited
CastleFriedrichswerth
Friedrichswerth Castle
Friedrichswerth Castle is a Baroque castle with an attached park on the southern edge of the municipality of Friedrichswerth in the district of Gotha in Thuringia. The complex has been preserved without fundamental alterations, apart from necessary technical modernizations.
Friedrichswerth Castle is located 13 km (as the crow flies) northwest of Gotha in the Nesse valley. The castle was built on the site of the previously demolished moated castle of Erffa.
In 1677, Duke Frederick I of Gotha commissioned his master builder Jeremias Tütleb to construct a representative country castle and chose the village of Erffa with its moated castle of the same name as the building site. The construction of the castle was only completed in 1689 and solemnly concluded in July of the same year. The building served the ducal family as a pleasure palace and summer residence. A (court) church was also built at the same time as the castle. The village was renamed Friedrichswerth in honor of the Duke. However, the Duke enjoyed his magnificent buildings for only a short time; he died in August 1691 at Friedrichswerth Castle from the consequences of a stroke.
In the following years, the castle served the Dukes of Gotha as intended as a summer residence and became the center of splendid festivities. Under Duke Frederick III, the Hermit Order - an elite club - was founded here. During the Seven Years' War, the castle was largely emptied for fear of looting. The administrative buildings of the castle already served to house the Friedrichswerth district administration; in March 1855, parts of the castle were handed over to the ducal judicial administration.
From 1923, the castle served as a reformatory and youth education center. After the founding of the GDR, the institution was converted into a youth workhouse.
Complex+
The Castle
The castle complex consists of a three-winged symmetrical building complex in the center of which the clock tower rises above a small inner courtyard and the adjoining park. The main access to the castle is from the west via a bridge. Inside, about 30 ceiling paintings created by the Gotha court painter Heinrich Martin Deesen adorned most of the rooms.
The Park
The Baroque garden, laid out in the French style, continues the castle complex to the east. This strictly symmetrically structured, rectangular area, bordered by a surrounding moat and walls, has an extent of about 290 x 80 m. In addition to exotic plants, fountains and a grotto were present. Gondolas and miniature ships were seen on the moat during summer festivals. Within the "garden", hermitages and small arbors were built; they served as entertainment for the aristocratic society. The "Order of Hermits" had about 70 members; in addition to the ducal family, it included members of the landed gentry and officials of the ducal administration with their ladies. During the Seven Years' War, this aristocratic amusement park, where officers of the Imperial Army also came and went as guests, came to an end.
Outbuildings
The ducal court administration was present with a row of representative buildings to serve the Duke's state affairs. The economic wing of the castle with stables, coach houses, and storage buildings was also built in the eastern part of this ensemble.
Court Church
For the duties of the court ceremonial, the Duke had a separate castle church built in the castle; it was elaborately decorated in 1685 by the brothers Johann Samuel and Johann Peter Rust and completed at the same time as the castle.
Fortification
The four corner bastions and the surrounding moat served to defend the complex. The castle had four small cannons, called field snakes, which were positioned on the bastions and fired salutes during festivities.
- «The castle rises on a bastion-shaped platform surrounded by moats [...] with a garden axially related to the castle, which is also enclosed by canals. In terms of type, Friedrichswerth is one of the "fortified pleasure palaces".
Current Situation and Use+
The castle with its park is a designated building and garden monument. The outdoor area is publicly accessible. In the years 1986-1987, stucco ceilings in the area of the castle church were restored. The entire complex has been unused since the youth workhouse moved out in the mid-1990s and is for sale.
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Source: Wikipedia · Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 · Image: http://www.wehrbauten.de/thread.php?threadid=589&sid=9b2b210ff3d27b7a80b9c70dbb4777c0
This description draws on the facts documented in the linked Wikipedia article; Wikipedia content is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Wording and editing: Mobile History.
Location: 50.9923, 10.5435