Darmstadt Things to Do

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Russian Tsar Nikolaus II married princess Alix of Darmstadt November 26, 1894. As he did not want to miss attending Orthodox services during his visits at Alix' family, he had commissioned the building of this chapel. Between 1897 and 1899 it was constructed by Leontij Nikolajewitsch Nebnois (Louis N. Benois), architect from St. Petersburg and grandfather of Peter Ustinov. The chapel is devoted to Mary Magdalene, with a big mosaic above the entrance portal.

But the chapel is no remains, it is still the religious centre of Darmstadt’s Orthodox people. Service is held regularly. It is possible to visit the church, but it is expected to give a small donation for restoring. Given the magnificent interior and exterior, minimum 1 € is considered appropriate. A lot of the exterior has been renovated over the years. I remember to have seen it in 1989, when I first came to Darmstadt; these days it looked not as splendid as today. And today – a blue sky lets the golden cupola with the crosses gleam like liquid gold.

Don’t miss to look at the basin in front of the chapel (photo 4). It is called Lily Basin and was also created by the Colony’s artists.

Interesting note on the side:
Princess Alix was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria of England. After her marriage, she changed her name into Alexandra Fjodorowna and was the last Tsarina of Russia.

Update January 2009:
new weblink below (in German and Russian).

Location of Russian Chapel on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., tip date: January 2006 (March 2011: location on Google Maps added).

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Luisenplatz is Darmstadt's main centre square. Since years, it is free of car traffic (all cars are lead through the city tunnel). However, it is still the main traffic junction of town, as it is the crossing of all street trains for changing lines. It is usually jammed with people, street trains and busses (maybe at night I could probably take a picture with less crowds :-)), and non-locals should pay extra care not to be run over by one of them (serious !).

The name of this square derives from Grossherzogin (grand duchess) Luise, whose husband Ludewig I is the ever-present main centre of the square, on top of the monument. "Langer Lui" (long Lui, Lui is Hessian dialect for Ludwig), how the monument is called among the locals, has been erected on the occasion of the first constitution, given to Darmstadt in 1844.

A bit older (1780) is the collegiate building on the northern part of the square (the one in the photo), domicile for the ministries. It was destroyed in WWII, but rebuilt true to original, and now houses the regional council.

Update August 2010:
website removed, since it was no longer valid (fourth time since I started writing my page back in 2005). And since I am sick and tired about Darmstadt's city officials' incompetence in context with websites 1) in English and 2) to keep at least a German version for more than a couple of month, I don't bother anymore to add a website.....

Location ofLuisenplatz on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., tip date: January 2006 (March 2011: location on Google Maps added).

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St. Ludwig Church is Darmstadt's main catholic church; centrally located 5 minutes walk from Luisenplatz (main square). Sometimes, I like to visit churches, mainly for their windows and other interior, but this church really took my breath away ! I have read about it, yes, but stepping inside and see this phenomenal architecture.....

The church was built as the first roman-catholic church in Darmstadt after reformation. Grand duke Ludwig I instructed his master builder Georg Moller, and he took Panthenon in Rome as archetype. It was finished in 1827. In WWII, most of Darmstadt's historical town was destroyed, also St. Ludwig Church - only it's walls remained. But after 1945, it was reconstructed, however, less costs involved. Still - the result is amazing, also after recent renovations of the interior, which were completed in 2005.
Moller constructed the church according to the divine proportion (haha, Dan Brown, I hear you !), the height from ground to architrave (14 m) being 2:3 of the above cupola (21 m). The 28 pillars end in Corinthian capitels, and covered with marble. The rotunda's only light source is a small opening of 8 m at it's apex, with the symbols of Trinity (god's eye, Christ's cross and pigeon).
The cupola (diameter 43 m) is painted in light blue, which really gives the illusion of an open sky. In contrast, the walls are painted in dark red, smear technique. The only decorations are 18 stations of the Way of the Cross and a wood carving of Maria in the rear, set in the walls. Below the cupola, on the architrave, is an all around engraving in golden letters (Ehre sei Gott in der Hoehe und auf der Erde Friede den Menschen seiner Gnade).

The whole interior is very unostentatious, which really adds to a magic feeling being inside, a good place to sit down for a while in quietude.

Update January 2009:
Weblink exchange. St. Ludwig has an own website. Out of a reason forever buried to me, "Darmstadt's so-called marketing" website has chosen to mention St. Ludwig church no longer....

Location of St. Ludwig Church on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., tip date: January 2006 (March 2011: location on Google Maps added).

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Close to Herrngarten, the small and beautiful Rokoko garden and Prince Georg Palais is located. French master builder Louis Remy de la Fosse, as a summer palace, built the palais under Landgrave Ernst Ludwig in 1710.

Since 1899, the palais houses the famous porcelain collection of the Grand Dukes of Hesse and Rhine. It had always been a private collection by the Duke's family and comprises unique examples from every step in historic development of of court porcelain and faïence art, since their beginning in early 18th century.
Therefore, almost all stylistic development is found in the museum. The collection is unique in another sense as well, as a large number of objects are on display, which have been gifts to the Dukes' family through their dynastic and diplomatic ties to Russia and England.
All most important porcelain manufactures are represented - Meissen, Frankenthal, Nymphenburg, Ludwigsburg, Vienna, St. Petersburg, Wedgewood and Sèvres, but the core of the collection os of Kelsterbach manufacture, which has been founded by Landgrave Ludwig VIII of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1761.
The collection is on display on the 2 floors of Prince Georg Palais, clearly arranged in the light rooms. The early years were more dedicated to Rococo and Baroque figurines of music, painting and hunting scenes and scenes of daily life. The later years are more of tableware and vases. Lots of side info explains the different manufactures history and their changing logos over the years.

Unfortunately, photographing is not allowed, so I took pictures of the leaflet.

Opening hours: Mo-Thu 13-13 and 14-17, Sat&Sun 10-13;
Admission: 2,50 € (Kids and holder of Darmstadt Card 1,50 €).

Between Prinz Georg Garten and the Palais are small but lovely teahouses and volieres left and kept from the old days.

Location of Prinz Georg Palais on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., tip date: January 2006 (March 2011: location on Google Maps added and website removed, since it is no longer.... who wonders....).

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The Hochzeitsturm (wedding tower) was a gift of Darmstadt's citizen to Gossherzog (Grand Duke) Ernst-Ludwig when he married Elenore von Solm-Hohensolms-Lich in 1905. Architect was Joseph Maria Olbrich (1867-1908), who has designed the tower according to echelon gables of Gothic brick buildings in northern Germany. The finished building, however, is of Expressionism style.
The tower is 48,5 m in height, and architectonically separated into three parts:
grey base with entrance portal, the nearly windowless body of the tower, made of dark-red clinker and the five pinnacle top with copperfoil and violet blind stones.

On top of the entrance, sculptor Heinrich Jobst (1874-1943) has created a relief, which shows personifications of the four virtues of rulers: strength, wisdom, fairness and benignity. The inscription below mentions the marriage and is flanked by the coat of arms of Darmstadt (the lion).

Also, mosaic of entrance portal, sundial on the southern side and a clock on the northern side have famous sculptors, but more about that in a separate tip in the local customs section.

The wedding tower is open to the public and I highly recommend to get up to the top. The tower is built on the highest elevation of Darmstadt (well, highest within town limits) and so magnificent views of the city and surroundings are guaranteed, weather permitted (see photo 3, taken in winter). On good days I could see as far as Frankfurt and its skyline. Don’t worry, there is no need to walk upstairs, as there is an elevator. But I recommend to walk downstairs to get views of the two rooms inside, one for the duke and one for his wife (photos 4 and 5).

Opening hours:
March to Oct.: Tue-Sun: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Nov. to Feb.: Fr-Sun: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Admission fee:
€1,50, and €0,50 for kids under 18 yrs.

Update August 2010:
website removed, since it was no longer valid (fourth time since I started writing my page back in 2005). And since I am sick and tired about Darmstadt's city officials' incompetence in context with websites 1) in English and 2) to keep at least a German version for more than a couple of month, I don't bother anymore to add a website.....

Location of Wedding Tower on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., tip date: January 2006 (March 2011: location on Google Maps added)

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Yes we have, it is called Waldspirale (forest spiral). It is said to be the 7th building in Germany of Friedensreich Hundertwasser and was completed in 2000 with 105 appartments, playground for kids, an artificial lake and some restaurants and bars. When it was opened, it looked quite naked, but now, after 7 years, a lot of plants and shrubs have started to work their way on walls and stairs. None of the 1000 windows is identical, no straight lines are used. It has 3 onion domes, and at the highest point 12 floors. Well, to be precise, it is not a spiral, but more a hairpin shape. But does that matter ?
The little restaurant on the southwestern side serves by the way, excellent Caffee Latte (for 2,50 €, mid 2007) and it is nice to sit on their terrace and look at every tiny detail.
And there is also a little shop that sells everything of Hundertwasser style, like photos, books, calendars etc.
Update August 2010:
The cafè is gone, deteriorating. Sad.

Directions:
by car: A5, exit Weiterstadt, follow the signs for Kranichstein, and at the crossings of Frankfurter Str. with Carl Schenck Ring, follow the signs for Waldspirale.
by streetcar: from Luisenplatz, streetcar 7 or 8, and get off at Rhoenring. Turn right after Esso gas station.

Update, August 30, 2008:
I thought it might be a good idea to mention other, lesser known of Hundertwasser's architectural gems here which have been visited by some of us VTers :-):
see Mira's page about Bad Blumau, Austria, a whole resort made by Hundertwasser,
and see Christine's newest page about Lutherstadt Wittenberg and the Hundertwasser school.

Update August 2010:
website removed, since it was no longer valid (fourth time since I started writing my page back in 2005). And since I am sick and tired about Darmstadt's city officials' incompetence in context with websites 1) in English and 2) to keep at least a German version for more than a couple of month, I don't bother anymore to add a website.....

Location of Hundertwasser House on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., tip date: January 2006 (March 2011: location on Google Maps added)

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Darmstadt Landesmuseum (county museum) has a nice collection of different variety in geology, palaeontology, zoology (huge amount of stuffed animals in dioramas), paintings (of such famous artists as Max Beckmann, Paul Klee, August Macke and Peter Paul Rubens), glass paintings from medieval to 20th century, medieval ivory carvings, religious wood sculptures, and technical instruments of 18-19th century (such as microscopes, scales, globes, etc).
The palaeontology collection is quite big, as Grube Messel (Messel pit) is close by and UNESCO Heritage since 1995.

Unfortunately, there is no leaflet to take with you when visiting the museum, so it might appear a bit chaotic in it's collections, also as the variety of the different exhibitions is quite big. I missed a kind of logical "time line" in it, or a recommendation, which exhibitions to visit in which sequence. Also, some of the staff is a bit chaotic (in the geology-palaeontology I asked which direction I should go - she recommended to start with the Mammuts, which would have brought me backwards in time:-)...
But still, it's worth a visit.
The website, however, is quite good, and can serve as a kind of guide - unfortunately only in German. Same for most of the descriptive signs. Room for improvement.

In my Local Customs tips, I will add some more info and some pictures of the collections.

Entrance fee: 2,50 Euro
Opening hours: Tue-Sat: 10-17, Wed: 10-20, Sun: 11-17

Update, June 19, 2007, ff:
The museum is closed for renovation. But not as one would expect for one year only - no, it is incredible 4 years... closed for renovation....
Who does not believe that this would happen in any museum - please see here:
Museum closed until 2011.....
I still cannot believe it....
Update August 2010:
oh my, why do I wonder..... the museum will not open before end of 2012.... And why would I not be surprised to update this tip in 2 years to learn that they will again postpone the reopening for another 2 years... if ever....
Update November 2012:
Hahahahahahaha... What did I write in August 2010??
Why am I not at all surprised to read that the museum will be closed until 2013?
I am even wondering if this isn't a typo and they mean year 3012.....
What a messy and incompetent organisation!!

Location of State Museum on Google Maps.

© Ingrid D., tip date: January 2006 (March 2011: location on Google Maps added).

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St. Maria Magdalena - Russische Kapelle = even the name conjures up distant images for me. Known locally as the Russian Chaple - this great beauty was built in 1897 - 1899 the architect Louis Benois must have been a very gifted person to create such a masterpiece. Tzar Nikolaus ll married Alexandra a German Princess from Darmstadt and wanted a Church built here so he would have some place familiar to worship when he visited Darmstadt. I could have stayed seated on the little bench forever, transfixed as if caught in a spell, absolutely charmed and enchanted by the magnificent detail. The Chaple for me seemed to jump staight out of a story book and will remain a fairy tale memory in my heart.