Raven Guides: Germany - Potsdam

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hop on-hop off bus tours (Apr-Oct, €15/12, children €6) from Luisenplatz 2. The full circuit of seven stops lasts one hour 45 minutes and buses leave every 30 minutes starting just before 10.00. Schloß Sanssouci (1747) was the palace Frederick the Great passionately wanted and largely planned himself. His determination to have a small Rococo summer palace away from Berlin, away from cares, hardened into differences with Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff over aspects of the design, which ended with the chief architect’s sacking and estrangement between the men. The final stages of the project were managed by Jan Bouman. Frederick’s vision of simplicity and intimacy triumphed despite shortcomings identified by Knobelsdorff. But why ‘Sans, souci.’ is expressed as such beneath the dome is much debated. Only 10 rooms were in the design and its epithet ‘the Prussian Versailles’ is hardly apt. Frederick the Enlightenment thinker required five guest rooms, one for Voltaire. Frederick the flautist required an ornate concert chamber. Ludwig Persius and Ferdinand von Arnim remodelled and plastered the household wings in the 1840s. The Weinberg, a formal terraced vineyard, drops away to the Große Fontäne, the hydraulics of which failed Frederick and continued to fail for 100 years. The colonnade on the north side framed a courtyard and a view of the follies on the Ruinenberg. The adjacent Bildergalerie (1764) accommodated Frederick’s art collection. Frederick’s other wish, the simple slab grave beside his greyhounds’ at the east end of the terrace, was not realised until the 1990s. It is now customary to leave potatoes (another of Frederick’s obsessions) in tribute, as well as blooms. Take bus 695 or X15 to Schloß Sanssouci. The many parts of Park Sanssouci represent many periods, after Frederick several rulers, and many designers. Knobelsdorff supplied the first plans for the Weinberg and immediate gardens around Schloß Sanssouci with features such as an obelisk with mock hieroglyphics erected to mark the entrance at the Hauptallee, and a garden grotto. Later development took place along the spine of the Hauptallee leading to Neues Palais. The ridges north of this could exploit views. To begin with several small island gardens were created around follies within the landscape but under Frederick’s successors more sight lines were opened up. The reorganisation by Peter Joseph Lenné in the English landscape style took place from 1828, after which the Park Charlottenhof section south of Hauptallee was added. Under Friedrich Wilhelm IV the Italian touches appeared and the so-called Marlygarten was developed. Framing the Marlygarten or east end of Park Sanssouci is the court church or Friedenskirche (Easter-mid Oct M-Su 10-18, mid Oct-Easter Sa-Su 11-17, entry free). Designed by Ludwig Persius for Friedrich Wilhelm IV on the pattern of the early Romanesque basilica of San Clemente in Rome, the church (1848) became part of a monastery-like complex comprising the 1889 mausoleum of Friedrich III (the emperor who reigned only 99 days) and his wife, daughter of Queen Victoria, and the 1854 Kavalierhaus, also known as Schloß Marly. Eventually the church’s crypt accommodated the grave of Friedrich Wilhelm himself. Take bus 612 or X15 to Friedenskirche. The idea for the imposing Neue Orangerie (Apr Sa-Su 10-18, May-Oct Tu-Su, €4/3 with tour, tower €2) on the northern height west of the windmill was sketched by Friedrich Wilhelm IV, like most of his fancies from Italian inspirations. It combines influences from Rome, the Vatican and Florence in a statement that merits the king’s statue in front. Ludwig Ferdinand Hesse and Friedrich August Stüler saw the project through in 1856 and the terraces, with a view over the garden and cascades built in front, were the work of Lenné. One hall was designed to hang locally produced copies of works by Raphael. The king had plans, never realised, for this building to be the centrepiece of a larger project. Take bus 695 or X15 to Orangerie. Cruises Weiße Flotte Potsdam (tel 0331-2759210, www.schiffahrt-in-potsdam.de) at Lange Brücke 6 runs Schiffahrt in Potsdam 90-minute tours (€13-14, families €32.50) around the lake castles past Glienicker Brücke (Mar & Nov Sa-Su, Apr-Oct at least three times daily). Four-hour island cruises (€19, families €47.50) or Havel lake cruises (€16, families €40) or Wannsee single (€11) or return (€14) cruises are also offered. Cruises depart from the quay at Neuer Lustgarten opposite Lange Brücke. Views The 77m tower of the Nikolaikirche (M-Su 9-19, €5) at Alter Markt provides the best view of Potsdam’s old city. The Belvedere am Pfingstberg (see entry below) and the Flatowturm (May-Oct Sa-Su 10-18, €2) from different perspectives offer fine all-round views of the Potsdam area and the Havel lakes. For the Flatowturm take bus 694 to Schloß Babelsberg. The artificial ruin Normannischer Turm (May-Oct Sa-Su 10-18, €2) on the Ruinenberg north of Schloß Sanssouci enjoys a commanding vista over the city and lakes area. Take tram 92 to Johann-Boumann-Platz. Parks & gardens Potsdam is surrounded by parks, dotted with palaces and architectural follies reflecting the idiosyncracies of their patrons. Park Sanssouci, at the west edge of the city, combines many stages and styles of park development and merges with Park Charlottenhof to the south. Hauptallee runs 2km east-west from the obelisk on Schopenhauerstraße, around the fountain Große Fontäne below Schloß Sanssouci, to the imposing facade of Neues Palais. Parts at the east end, notably the Weinbergterrassen, Holländischer Garten below the Bildergalerie and the Marlygarten attached to the Friedenskirche are separated by walls and the Botanischer Garten on Maulbeerallee below the Neue Orangerie is largely fenced off. Most of these exhibit formal characteristics with statuary, while the broader layout by Peter Joseph Lenné is a landscaped vision. The entire area also has a boundary fence. The park map at 1:5000 (see Information) is desirable for following the many paths past all the key buildings. Neuer Garten is the setting for Marmorpalais and Schloß Cecilienhof north of the city, spreading north-south along Heiliger See. Bus 603 stops at the south end (Alleestraße or the corner of Große Weinmeisterstraße and Am Neuen Garten) and north end (Hohenstraße near the Meierei – the dairy – or Schloß Cecilienhof). Other worthwhile sights are the pyramid north of Marmorpalais, used as a giant food storage, and the Orangerie to the palace’s south. A walk south-west from Cecilienhof leads past Villa Schöningen and the Nordicstyle buildings of the old royal sailing station Kongsnæs to Glienicker Brücke (tram 93 or the Wassertaxi ferry). Park Glienicke, with the villa-style summer palace Schloß Glienicke, is across the bridge in Greater Berlin. RAVEN TRAVEL GUIDES GERMANY - Potsdam 5
Frederick the Great admired French culture but was not the only monarch in German lands who did not want to be overshadowed by Versailles. The 1769 late Baroque edifice Neues Palais (May-Oct W-M 10-18, Nov-Mar W-M 10-17, €8/6 with tour or audio guide) at the west end of Park Sanssouci was Frederick’s assertion that Prussian brilliance was undimmed by the Seven Years War, but otherwise out of character for a monarch frugal where non-military matters were concerned. Designed with more than 200 apartments, it dwarfs the delicate Schloß Sanssouci (to which it was the second summer residence) counting 300 figures from mythology on its roof, replete with Rococo theatre and banqueting halls. A mock temple stood front for the king’s antiquities collection. Its ostentation as a residence kept it in favour with monarchs up to the last emperor Wilhelm II. The colonnaded Kommunen behind, built in the mid 18th century for staff, is now part of Potsdam’s university. The royal apartment (May-Oct W-M, €5/4) is accessible by tour only. Take bus 605, 606, 695 or X5 to Neues Palais. The extension of Park Sanssouci to the south by the acquisition of an estate provided Friedrich Wilhelm IV, then crown prince, the opportunity to commission Schloß Charlottenhof (1828), a Classicist makeover by Ludwig Persius and Karl Friedrich Schinkel of the 18th century manor house on the site – with Friedrich Wilhelm’s collaboration. The restrained elegance was an expression of a bourgeois ideal of an informal country villa. The interiors with furnishings by Schinkel are in near-original condition. Admission (May-Oct Tu-Su 10-18, €4/3) is by German tour only, but an English text is provided. Take bus 605 or 606 to Schloß Charlottenhof. The oriental motif was fashionable in the pavilions of princely gardens and Frederick, though no slave to fashion, suggested the ideas for the Chinesisches Haus (May-Oct Tu-Su 10-18, €2), eventually completed in 1757 by Johann Gottfried Büring south of Hauptallee, for the king’s small summer gatherings. The Rococo decoration included gilt life-size musicians and tea drinkers by Peter Benckert and Johann Gottlieb Heymüller. The setting expressed the king’s preference for intimate surroundings – even the kitchen was removed from the scene of what was then a southern corner of the palace park – while the pavilion held the porcelain. The Italian taste of Friedrich Wilhelm was met with the Florentine villa concept for the Römische Bäder, completed in 1844 as a Romantic ensemble by Persius to designs he produced with Schinkel with the enthusiastic input of the king. First completed was a court gardener’s house, followed by a summer house, bath house and tea pavilion. The site exploited the shore of Maschinenteich, a pondage for the steam pump, and was surrounded by kitchen gardens created by Hermann Sello. The buildings can be admired from outside but are closed for long-term renovation. Take bus 605 or 606 to Schloß Charlottenhof. Park Babelsberg across the Tiefer See from the Altstadt provides an opportunity to walk from building to building while enjoying occasional vantage points back to the city. At the north end bus 694 stops at the main gate near Schloß Babelsberg. Around the shore of Glienicker Lake the pseudo-medieval castle form of the small Maschinenhaus and the Kleines Schloß to the west on Tiefer See are dominated by Schloß Babelsberg (under renovation) above, with a forecourt view over Glienicker Brücke to the north. Formerly the Berlin Wall ran along the shore and through the Maschinenhaus. To the south-east of the castle along the rambling path network is the old stables (slated for renovation) and the Gothic Gerichtslaube, part of Berlin’s 13th century town hall moved to the site during the 1860s. Further south-east is the Flatowturm (see Views). The Wassertaxi stops below on the lake shore. Beyond the south boundary trams 94 and 99 stop at Humboldtring. Completely different is the horticultural island Freundschaftsinsel under Lange Brücke, notable for a carefully cultivated collection of plant hybrids. Markets Fresh produce from the surrounding districts is sold at markets in Bassinplatz (M-F 7-17, Sa 7-12). The markets at Nauener Tor (W & Sa 9-16) include fresh produce, food delicacies and art and crafts. A weekly farmers’ market and jumble sale (Sa 7-14) takes place at Weberplatz, the centre of the old Nowawes weavers’ settlement in Babelsberg. During the first Advent weekend from late in November the site is taken over by a Christmas market (F 17-22, Sa 11-22, Su 11-18). Events The Potsdam Christmas market Blauer Lichterglanz at Luisenplatz runs from late in November until a few days after Christmas (closed Christmas Eve). Stalls open at 11.00 daily, trading until 20.00 or 21.00. For the Potsdamer Schlößernacht festival see the Performance section above. Food In the 18th century building at Schopenhauer Straße 33, Alter Stadtwächter (M-Su 10- 24, tel 0331-903741) offers a German menu (mostly under €20) with daily specials, salads, vegetarian options, steak and fish. The cafe 11-Line (M-Su 11-24) at Charlottenstraße 119 has an alternative flavour, with budget and light meals until late and an extended breakfast buffet (€8, until 17.00) every Sunday. The Russian restaurant Alexandrowka (Tu-F from 11.30, Sa 11.30-21, Su 11.30-20, tel 0331-2006478) at Russische Kolonie 1 serves national specialities and cakes under €15 in one of the traditional timber buildings in Siedlung Alexandrowka. There is also a tea garden. The restaurant closes weekdays at 18.00 Jan-Feb, 20.00 Mar-Apr, 22.00 May- Oct and 21.00 Nov-Dec. Meet & drink Brandenburger Straße between Brandenburger Tor and Dortustraße is a popular cafe strip, especially outdoors when weather permits. Café Alice (M-Sa 10-19, Su 11-19) at Potsdam 6 - RAVEN TRAVEL GUIDES GERMANY
Page 1 and 2: Potsdam Luisenplatz
Page 3 and 4: To replace the medieval castle, the
Page 5: PERFORMANCE The Nikolaisaal (www.ni
Page 9: The Romantic ideals of Karl Friedri

Raven Guides: Germany - Potsdam

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