Precious manuscripts in Wiblingen, royal silver in Bad Schussenried, the UNESCO World Heritage Day in Maulbronn - there's so much going on at the State monasteries this spring that a visit is obligatory for anyone interested in culture. And in Salem a tour through the extensive complex offers an outstanding opportunity to pursue a study in style.
At the start of the season at the state palaces and gardens of Baden-Württemberg, the exhibition "Rosenblatt und Federkiel" (Rose Petal and Quill) will attract visitors to Ulm-Wiblingen. The exhibition will show valuable manuscripts and prints from the former monastery collection (Museum in the Convent Building) from 29 April to 26 July. The treasures from a period of 500 years make it clear why the monastery was considered a refuge for knowledge and wisdom.
In later times, when the religious sovereigns had moved out, secular rulers occupied the territory and uses changed over the centuries. One example of this is Bebenhausen Monastery. The kings of Württemberg had the former abbot's house converted to a hunting residence. A central area of Bebenhausen Palace is the seigniorial kitchen, which was furnished in the time from 1913 to 1916. It still appears surprisingly modern today and, as a rarity in the world of palaces, is an outstanding testimonial to cultivated royal living. A newly opened permanent exhibition focuses on the ingenious arrangement of rooms from the pantry to the kitchen with its impressive stove system to the scullery, the silver polishing chamber and the dumbwaiter.
In Ludwigsburg, a time in which the town around the palace slowly took shape will be commemorated this year. The town's 300th anniversary will be celebrated. The sovereign Duke Eberhard Ludwig of Württemberg made a real effort. The offer of free building sites and building materials and 15 years without taxation were intended to entice craftsmen, artists, merchants and local dignitaries to settle here. By the way, the first middle-class house from the "Gründerzeit" (latter part of the 19th century) is still standing today.
Children can easily embark on a journey into the past at Ludwigsburg Palace. In the "children's Reich" role-playing and costumes make it possible to travel back in time to the world of princesses and noblemen. The hustle and bustle of the royal retinue can be observed from the higher vantage point of a king's throne. The program of the state palaces is excellently received by the young visitors and their parents. Additional adventure areas will become accessible in the next several months.
The issue is available here in German only.