Imperial Castle

On the verge of the 20th century Poznań was getting a new lease of life. The German government decided to completly change the role of the city: from a stronghold to an administrative and economic center. The new approach was called „die Hebungspolitik” which roughly translates as „the policy of rise”; „rise” meaning of course elevation of the living standards and importance of the city. The ultimate goal was to create an incentive for Prussian officials as well as oridinary German citzens to settle in Poznań and to establish permanent cultural domination of Germans in the city. Perhaps the most important element of this plan was the foundation of a new, representational district west of the Old Town inspired by the Viennese Ringstrasse and compromising of such buldings as government offices, banks, The Royal Academy, a new theather and a brand new imperial residence: Königlisches Residenzschloss.

Wilhelm's II passion for the Middle Ages isn't as well known as that of Ludwig II of Bavaria but there are reasons to suspect that his obsession with this historical period rivaled that of the infamous „Fairytale King”. Bearing that in mind, his choice of the Neo-Romanesque style as the most appropriate for the residence of a German monarch comes as rather unsuprising. So does the choice of the architect: Franz Schwechten, known also for Anhalter Bahnhof and Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche in Berlin, was already renowned for his revivalistic works; moreover Neo-Romanesque was his style of choice. The construction works began in 1905 and were completed within just five years. The western wing was devoted to the apartaments of the emperor and his family, while the west wing conteined the throne rooms and various govermental offices. Since the castle was built in the spirit of 'architecture parlande' ('speaking architecture') many of the details were modeled after those of famous buildings associated with Germanic monarchies, most notably the Palatine Chapel of Aachen which inspired the design of the windows in the Throne Room. However, one of the most well recognised elements of the castle is a fountain based on one from Patio de los Leones in Alhambra.

After Poznań was reclaimed by Poland in 1919 the castle was used by insitituions of the Polish Government (Ministry of the Former Prussian Partition and some of the faculties of the newly founded Adam Mickiewicz Uniwersity) and served as one of the presidential residences The Castle's architectural decoration and furnishings were mostly left unchanged in this period. This fact might seem suprising as the iconography was designed to glorify the German nation and contained some anti-Polish elements. It is speculated that the reason why this decoration was left intact was the fact that overcomplexity of the original iconographic programme has made it hard to comprehend. Ironically, the castle's interior was almost completly redesigned after the Nazi Germany assumed control of Poznań. The two biggest changes made in that period were the relocation of the main entrance and replacing the chapel with Hitler's cabinet. The latter was complete with a small balcony for the Fuhrer' s apperances during parades and rallies. According to a widespread urban legend underfloor heating was installed on the balcony, however no proof of existance of such installation was found during any of the renovation works. Another major change that occured during the war was the partial destruction of the highest condignation of the tower. After the war a decision was made to demolish this condignation altogether, so that the castle wouldn't influence the city's panorama as strongly as before (demolishing the whole castle was also considered).

Novadays the castle houses various cultural institutions and is the venue of some of the most interesting cultural events in the city.

(Ksenia)