Der Fürstensteiner Grund - Einblicke in ein deutsch-polnisches Modellprojekt im polnischen Niederschlesien

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Abstract

Alongside the garden terraces, which were already famous at the time of their construction, the castle complex of Książ (German: Fürstenstein) is framed by an extensive historical park and cultural landscape. It is unique in that it is still preserved in its original dimensions today, even if large parts of it have become overgrown; design intentions are therefore difficult to recognise or only recognisable to specialists. At the same time, exceptional natural values with valuable habitats have developed in these areas, which have been designated as nature and landscape protection areas.

One centrepiece is the so called »Wąwóz Pełcznicy pod Książem« (German: Für
stensteinerGrund, English: Gorge of Książ), a deep notch valley below the castle, which meanders through impressive rock formations and steep slopes over a length of circa three kilometres. Hans Heinrich VI of Hochberg (1768–1833) initiated the creation of a landscape park from 1794 in this gorge. The preceding marriage with Anna Emilia of Anhalt-Köthen-Pless (1770–1830) in 1791 signalled the beginning of a renewal in Książ: For the first time in its history, the wider surroundings of the palace were taken into consideration for garden and park design ideas. Hans Heinrich VI commissioned the painter and architect Christian Wilhelm Tischbein (1751–1824), a descendant of the famous Hessian Tischbein artist family, to develop a draft for the landscape park. An artificial castle ruin, (ephemeral) decorative buildings, paths and staircases, bridges, a pond and statues were set up in the valley. Guidebooks praised the varied
landscape; spa guests from nearby Szczawno-Zdrój and Stary Zdrój visited the area.Throughout the 19th century, the valley remained a popular excursion
destination, and numerous artists captured the views in paintings and graphics. Around 1900, under Hans Heinrich XV (1861–1938) and his wife Mary-Theresa Cornwallis-West (1873–1943), known as Daisy von Pless, the park area was modernised as a woodland garden with large populations of rhododendrons. To this day, relics from both design phases have been preserved, but are in poor condition.

In cooperation between Technical University of Dresden and the Wro
cław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, a model project at the interface of cultural history, preservation of garden monuments, nature and water protection and tourism has been elaborating since May 2021, sponsored by the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU). In practice, communication problems arise due to different objectives, especially between nature protection
and monument preservation. So far, it has not been possible to develop an overall planning strategy that incorporates both cultural and natural heritage.
This is where the DBU project applies, as the administration of Książ Castle wishes to integrate the historic landscape more closely into a museum and tourism concept. Stakeholders, institutions and authorities are involved in the project from the beginning in order to win them over as long-term guarantors
for the preservation and maintenance of the historical landscape. It is a joint task to preserve the Gorge of Książ for future generations as a shared European cultural and natural heritage.

Details

Original languageGerman
Pages (from-to)76-91
Number of pages16
JournalAha! Miszellen zur Gartengeschichte und Gartendenkmalpflege
Volume2024
Issue number9
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2024
Peer-reviewedNo

External IDs

Mendeley 8df1adf8-b4cf-3942-9c23-c6c61f2386e8

Keywords