Germany > North Rhine-Westphalia > Villa Hugel
Villa Hugel
N 51°24.44', E 7°0.513'
2015-04-18
http://www.villahuegel.de
Our rating: 7.80
Overall rating: - Rate this place - 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
In the southern part of Essen, on the high banks of the river Ruhr, stands villa of a wealthiest family in the history of Germany. The building was constructed in 1869-1873 respectively. First sketches of the villa were drew by Alfred Krupp, the richest and most powerful man in Europe at that time. Curiously, the villa was built of fire-resistant materials, as industrialist afraid of fire. Also interesting is the fact that despite all his money, Krupp could not find a good architect for the building. Probably he was not very popular person in the country, sometimes that happens to a rich people. However with the efforts of many architects the villa was built and became a true masterpiece. To understand the size you need to know that the building has 269 rooms and at the time of 1902 it was served by 570 people! Just imagine, more than five hundred people are working in your house, it is more than in many large companies nowadays. In April 1945 the villa was confiscated by the US command and in 1952 returned to the family of Krupps. In 1984 museum and gallery were organized there. The museum is located in a small wing of the building and the gallery and main halls in the large one.
Villa Hugel, south facade ©Yuriy Buriak
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
After a walk in the park, first visit the small wing with the museum of the Krupp family, as this part of the building is less impressive.
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
Rings are the symbol of the Krupp family and logo of the company since 1875. It symbolizes the seamless railway wheels.
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
Unfortunately museum is only in german, although it stores very interesting exhibits. Here's for example photo of Alfried Krupp's arrest in 1945. A curious fact - he was sentenced to 12 years with confiscation of property, but released by a US court. The main emphasis in an appeal was the logo with 3 rings - symbol of peace. After his release Alfried Krupp was able to recover and return former glory to the factories. In 1999, concerns «AG Krupp» and «Thyssen AG» merged to form the largest group in Europe «ThyssenKrupp AG».
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
Warning that all property of "Friedrich Krupp" is controlled by the military. This is not surprising, since at all times of its existence Krupps were the largest arms manufacturers. And of course served to all rulers of Germany, including Hitler.
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
The largest companies in Germany in 1958
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
At a time when there was no Facebook and Instagram it was not possible to boast about the trips, so rich people created personal photo books with photos.
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
After the museum, we went to the main wing. Hall of such size we have not seen yet.
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
Overall, the interiors of Villa Hugel resemble more a palace, then a living house. We did not see such scales even at the estate of the former Ukrainian president :)
Hall of tapestries ©Yuriy Buriak
Concert hall ©Yuriy Buriak
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
The Main Staircase ©Yuriy Buriak
Villa Hugel ©Yuriy Buriak
In 2015 the park was opened from 8 to 20 and the villa from 10 to 18, ticket price 5 euros. But better check the calendar on the official website , as villa may be closed due to various events. Getting there: Villa Hugel is located in the south of Essen. It is best to use S-Bahn S6 from Essen Hbf or Koln Hbf and go to the station Essen-Hügel. You can also take trams 101 or 107 to stop Frankenstraße or bus 194 to the stop Zur Villa Hügel.
Tags, Germany: palace , park Tags, all countries: palace , park
- Rate this place -
Location : ------------ 1 - Far beyond the settlements, you must spend minimum a day 2 - Near the small town, you need to walk long distance 3 - Can be reached only by car 4 - A small town with a poor public transport 5 - Outside the settlements, but with excellent transport links 6 - A small town with excellent transport links 7 - Medium-size city 8 - Suburb of the capital or major city, the ability to reach by public transport 9 - Big city 10 - Capital
Impressions : ------------ 1 - No point in visiting 2 - Boring, wasted time 3 - You can visit, if you have a lot of free time and nothing better to do 4 - A lot of things, but not so interesting 5 - It seems to be interesting, but hard way to spoil the impression 6 - There is something interesting, but the rest is not worth the attention 7 - Probably interesting, but for everybody 8 - Very cool, but difficult to see everything and long-distance trails 9 - Very cool, but there are similar facilities in other locations 10 - Very cool, this is not anywhere else
Number of tourists (weekend afternoon) : ------------ 1 - Crowds, impossible to see everything normally 2 - A lot of tourists, a long wait 3 - A lot of tourists, the organization is lame 4 - A lot of tourists, but good organization 5 - There are many tourists, but they are concentrated in one place and you can walk freely 6 - Many tourists everywhere, but the large space is compensated 7 - The average number of tourists. To photograph, you must wait 8 - Tourists are, but they do not interfere 9 - There are few tourists 10 - You are alone
State : ------------ 1 - Only title left 2 - Dull ruins 3 - On restoration 4 - The picturesque ruins 5 - Have not been restored, the state is poor 6 - Partially destroyed, but the rest of the normal state 7 - Have not been restored, good condition 8 - OK, but it is possible to make better 9 - Looks good from the outside, partial repair inside or without repair 10 - In excellent condition, well-groomed area
Picturesque (for the photographer) : ------------ 1 - - 2 - - 3 - Horrible background, normal pictures only from the top 4 - wires and cars do not allow make normal photo 5 - Interfere with foreign objects 6 - In the city, but more or less normal photo can be made 7 - Beautiful, but you can take pictures with just one point 8 - Very nice, but you can only shoot at a certain time 9 - Very nice, but hard to get to the good weather or permanently interfere with tourists 10 - Very nice, but occasionally interferes with the weather or tourists
* - Note: Description of the evaluation is not always appropriate for a particular object, it's just a little help
Our rating - 7.80
Location : ------------ 1 - Far beyond the settlements, you must spend minimum a day 2 - Near the small town, you need to walk long distance 3 - Can be reached only by car 4 - A small town with a poor public transport 5 - Outside the settlements, but with excellent transport links 6 - A small town with excellent transport links 7 - Medium-size city 8 - Suburb of the capital or major city, the ability to reach by public transport 9 - Big city 10 - Capital
Impressions : ------------ 1 - No point in visiting 2 - Boring, wasted time 3 - You can visit, if you have a lot of free time and nothing better to do 4 - A lot of things, but not so interesting 5 - It seems to be interesting, but hard way to spoil the impression 6 - There is something interesting, but the rest is not worth the attention 7 - Probably interesting, but for everybody 8 - Very cool, but difficult to see everything and long-distance trails 9 - Very cool, but there are similar facilities in other locations 10 - Very cool, this is not anywhere else
Number of tourists (weekend afternoon) : ------------ 1 - Crowds, impossible to see everything normally 2 - A lot of tourists, a long wait 3 - A lot of tourists, the organization is lame 4 - A lot of tourists, but good organization 5 - There are many tourists, but they are concentrated in one place and you can walk freely 6 - Many tourists everywhere, but the large space is compensated 7 - The average number of tourists. To photograph, you must wait 8 - Tourists are, but they do not interfere 9 - There are few tourists 10 - You are alone
State : ------------ 1 - Only title left 2 - Dull ruins 3 - On restoration 4 - The picturesque ruins 5 - Have not been restored, the state is poor 6 - Partially destroyed, but the rest of the normal state 7 - Have not been restored, good condition 8 - OK, but it is possible to make better 9 - Looks good from the outside, partial repair inside or without repair 10 - In excellent condition, well-groomed area
Picturesque (for the photographer) : ------------ 1 - - 2 - - 3 - Horrible background, normal pictures only from the top 4 - wires and cars do not allow make normal photo 5 - Interfere with foreign objects 6 - In the city, but more or less normal photo can be made 7 - Beautiful, but you can take pictures with just one point 8 - Very nice, but you can only shoot at a certain time 9 - Very nice, but hard to get to the good weather or permanently interfere with tourists 10 - Very nice, but occasionally interferes with the weather or tourists
* - Note: Description of the evaluation is not always appropriate for a particular object, it's just a little help
Visitor's rating - 0.00
Location : ------------ 1 - Far beyond the settlements, you must spend minimum a day 2 - Near the small town, you need to walk long distance 3 - Can be reached only by car 4 - A small town with a poor public transport 5 - Outside the settlements, but with excellent transport links 6 - A small town with excellent transport links 7 - Medium-size city 8 - Suburb of the capital or major city, the ability to reach by public transport 9 - Big city 10 - Capital
Impressions : ------------ 1 - No point in visiting 2 - Boring, wasted time 3 - You can visit, if you have a lot of free time and nothing better to do 4 - A lot of things, but not so interesting 5 - It seems to be interesting, but hard way to spoil the impression 6 - There is something interesting, but the rest is not worth the attention 7 - Probably interesting, but for everybody 8 - Very cool, but difficult to see everything and long-distance trails 9 - Very cool, but there are similar facilities in other locations 10 - Very cool, this is not anywhere else
Number of tourists (weekend afternoon) : ------------ 1 - Crowds, impossible to see everything normally 2 - A lot of tourists, a long wait 3 - A lot of tourists, the organization is lame 4 - A lot of tourists, but good organization 5 - There are many tourists, but they are concentrated in one place and you can walk freely 6 - Many tourists everywhere, but the large space is compensated 7 - The average number of tourists. To photograph, you must wait 8 - Tourists are, but they do not interfere 9 - There are few tourists 10 - You are alone
State : ------------ 1 - Only title left 2 - Dull ruins 3 - On restoration 4 - The picturesque ruins 5 - Have not been restored, the state is poor 6 - Partially destroyed, but the rest of the normal state 7 - Have not been restored, good condition 8 - OK, but it is possible to make better 9 - Looks good from the outside, partial repair inside or without repair 10 - In excellent condition, well-groomed area
Picturesque (for the photographer) : ------------ 1 - - 2 - - 3 - Horrible background, normal pictures only from the top 4 - wires and cars do not allow make normal photo 5 - Interfere with foreign objects 6 - In the city, but more or less normal photo can be made 7 - Beautiful, but you can take pictures with just one point 8 - Very nice, but you can only shoot at a certain time 9 - Very nice, but hard to get to the good weather or permanently interfere with tourists 10 - Very nice, but occasionally interferes with the weather or tourists
* - Note: Description of the evaluation is not always appropriate for a particular object, it's just a little help