Württemberg Mausoleum

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|image1=Waldburg Portrait König Wilhelm.jpg

|caption1=King William I

|alt1=A portrait of William I early in his reign. He is dressed in an ornate military uniform, with a red sash.

|image2=Ekaterina Pavlovna of Russia by anonymous (19 c., Hermitage).jpg

|caption2=Queen Catherine

|al2=Portrait of Catherine at the start of the 19th century

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The Napoleonic Wars had drastically changed the balance of power in Europe, but especially in Germany. There Napoleon had reorganized the territories of the former Holy Roman Empire into several new French satellite states. Among those was the Kingdom of Württemberg, ruled by King Frederick I, previously Duke Frederick III, who had been coerced into alliance with Napoleonic France. In exchange for fealty to France and auxiliary Württemberger troops, Frederick was rewarded with land from smaller German states and increased rank and status. At the Congress of Vienna, Frederick was able to keep his gains thanks to his connections to the United Kingdom and the Russian Empire.{{citation needed|date=February 2020}} While traveling to England{{why?|date=February 2020}} in 1814, William, Crown Prince of Württemberg, met Grand Duchess Catherine Pavlovna of Russia, his cousin and a recent widow.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Grand Duchess and the Crown Prince}}{{Sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Katharina von Württemberg}} The two fell in love,{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Grand Duchess and the Crown Prince}} but William was already married to a Bavarian princess, Caroline Augusta of Bavaria.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Wilhelm I. von Württemberg}} The pair met again in Vienna and resolved to marry,{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Grand Duchess and the Crown Prince}} leading William to obtaining a speedy divorce from Princess Caroline on the basis of non-consummation.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Wilhelm I. von Württemberg}} That same year, 1816, Catherine and William were wed, strengthening already strong ties between Württemberg and Russia.{{Sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Katharina von Württemberg}}{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Wilhelm I. von Württemberg}}{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Milestones}}

Also in 1816, Frederick I died,{{citation needed|date=February 2020}} elevating the newlyweds to the monarchy of a troubled state. The kingdom was in the midst of the Year Without Summer and plagued by crop failure. To help her new subjects, Catherine threw herself into relief programs and humanitarian projects.{{Sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Katharina von Württemberg}} As a result, Catherine earned the respect and admiration of the common people.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Milestones}}

Image:JH Renz - Burg Wirtemberg um 1600 (Lithographie ca.1840).jpg, upon whose site the Mausoleum was built]]

In early 1819, Catherine, sick with a cold, lanced a blister on her lip. The blister became infected and rapidly led to her death by stroke.{{Sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Katharina von Württemberg}}

The Württemberg was the site of the ancestral castle of the House of Württemberg.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Dedication Stone}} Legend claimed that the castle was built by a daughter of Frederick Barbarossa and her lover,{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: What's in a Name?}} though in fact it was built a century earlier, in 1083. The original was destroyed in 1311, forcing the Württembergs to move their seat of power into Stuttgart. Wirtemberg Castle was destroyed and rebuilt over and over again, but by the 1790s it had generally fallen into disrepair.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Dedication Stone}}

Before her death, Queen Catherine had asked to be buried on the Württemberg,{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Building}}{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Dedication Stone}}{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Wilhelm I. von Württemberg}} so King William I had the castle demolished in 1819.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Building}} He announced a contest to determine a plan for a Neo-Gothic structure, soliciting entries from famous architects of the time such as Leo von Klenze, Joseph Thürmer, and Heinrich Hübsch.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Sepulchral Chapel}}{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Giovanni Battista Salucci}} For reasons unknown, William I chose one of three unsolicited designs by his court architect, Giovanni Battista Salucci, for a Neoclassical mausoleum.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Sepulchral Chapel}} Salucci became the court architect to King William I in 1817.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Giovanni Battista Salucci}}

While construction was underway, Queen Catherine's remains were interred in the Stiftskirche in Stuttgart. The people of Württemberg donated generously to the Mausoleum's construction fund.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Milestones}}

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The cornerstone of the Mausoleum was laid in May 1820. Construction proceeded rapidly and without difficulty; by 1821, the interiors were under construction themselves. The Mausoleum was finished in 1824.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Building}}

The Mausoleum was used as a Russian Orthodox church from 1825 to 1899. A Russian Orthodox service continues to be served every year at Pentecost.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Chapel}}

On 25 June 1864, William I died in Rosenstein Palace, but left instructions to be interred with Catherine in the Mausoleum. Per his final testament, William's body was carried out of Stuttgart after sunset and arrived at the Mausoleum just before morning on 30 June, when was laid to rest with Catherine.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Wilhelm I. von Württemberg}}

Fyodor Ivanovich Tyutchev, a Russian poet who worked in Germany and traveled to Stuttgart about in 1828, wrote the poem Rotenberg that was published in 1837.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Poem}}

Salucci submitted at least three plans for the Mausoleum during the 1819 contest, all for a Neoclassical structure. The design used for the Mausoleum was inspired by Andrea Palladio's Villa Capra "La Rotonda".{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Building}}

The Mausoleum is circular, with four arms,{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Chapel}} three of which are porticos, approached by a staircase of four perrons, and topped with a free-standing dome. The landing of each perron hosts a cast-iron bowl for offerings, a motif taken from tombs of European antiquity and from La Rotonda. Biblical verses carved in stone are present above the north and south porticos.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Building}} The Mausoleum is lit by a glass skylight at the top of the dome.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Chapel}} This design was a compromise made between a more modest structure and a larger version with a colonnade.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Building}} This is also the case for the crypt, which Salucci had intended to be decorated with reliefs.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Crypt}} The iron and glass construction of the Mausoleum cupola is some of the earliest all-iron architecture in Germany.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Giovanni Battista Salucci}}

In addition to the Mausoleum, two additional buildings were erected on the Württemberg.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Sepulchral Chapel}} These were residences for a Russian Orthodox priest and his family, and the other for two liturgical singers. After 1895, the houses became the residencies for custodians charged with keeping the Mausoleum in good order. In 2015–16, the priest's house was remodeled into a visitor's center.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Priest's and Psalmists' Houses}}

File:Grabkapelle auf dem Württemberg 08.JPG of the Mausoleum, flanked by the Apostles Matthew (left) and John (right)]]

The interior of the Mausoleum was inspired by Queen Catherine's Russian Orthodox faith and is spatially divided in the fashion of a Russian church. Those spaces are threefold: a vestibule, nave, and a chancel. The nave is wrapped by eight columns and eight pilasters, topped in the Corinthian order and flanking four niches containing statues of the Four Evangelists, which support the dome. That dome is pockmarked with recessed panels that each hold a stucco rosette, and then itself topped with a skylight. The chancel is found at the east end, but accessible only by Russian Orthodox priests. Its separating iconostasis was designed by Salucci and decorated with paintings from Queen Catherine's personal collection.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Chapel}} Each of the Evangelists appears in medieval fashion – dressed in Roman garb, sporting a tablet, and depicted with their symbol, with the exception of John. The statues were commissioned by William I from Johann Heinrich von Dannecker and Bertel Thorvaldsen, and carved from Carrara marble. Luke, Mark, and Matthew were carved in 1825 in Rome by different sculptors. {{ill|Theodor Wagner (sculptor)|de|Theodor Wagner (Bildhauer)|lt=Theodor Wagner}}, Dannecker's student, carved Luke, while Thorvaldsen sketched the latter two but left the actual carving to his own students, {{ill|Johannes Leeb|de}} and {{ill|Johann Nepomuk Zwerger|de}}. Dannecker himself carved John in a humanist fashion, without beard or his symbol. John was completed and installed in 1828.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Four Evangelists}} Since 1928, the cornerstone of Wirtemberg Castle has been on display in the north arm of the chapel nave.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Dedication Stone}}

Directly beneath the nave chapel is the crypt, accessed by a narrow staircase. The floorplan of the above chapel is retained, but lighting is provided by candles and the grated oculus in the ceiling. Queen Catherine and King William I are interred together in a double sarcophagus in the east arm, opposite busts of their likeness in the west arm, while Maria Friederike Charlotte lies in the north arm. The double sarcophagus was designed by Salucci and carved from Carrara marble by court sculptor Antonio Isopi, and records the names and dates of birth and death of the monarchs within.{{sfn|Württemberg Mausoleum: Crypt}}

{{Panorama|image=File:Grabkapelle auf dem Württemberg Stuttgart Rotenberg 2015 03.jpg|height=300px|caption=Panorama of the Mausoleum at the base of its stairs, on the west side}}

{{Commons|Grabkapelle auf dem Württemberg}}

{{portal|Architecture|Germany|Baden-Württemberg}}

• Wirtemberg Castle
• William I of Württemberg
• Catherine Pavlovna of Russia

{{reflist|30em}}

{{refbegin}}

• {{cite web|title=The Sepulchral Chapel|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/visitor-experience/the-sepulchral-chapel/|publisher={{ill|Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|de}}|accessdate=5 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Sepulchral Chapel}}}}
• {{cite web|title=The Building|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/visitor-experience/the-sepulchral-chapel/the-building/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Building}}}}
• {{cite web|title=The Chapel|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/visitor-experience/the-sepulchral-chapel/the-building/the-chapel/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Chapel}}}}
• {{cite web|title=The Crypt|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/visitor-experience/the-sepulchral-chapel/the-building/the-crypt/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Crypt}}}}
• {{cite web|title=The Priest's House and the Psalmists' House|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/visitor-experience/the-sepulchral-chapel/the-building/the-priests-house-and-the-psalmists-house/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Priest's and Psalmists' Houses}}}}
• {{cite web|title=The Dedication Stone|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/visitor-experience/hidden-treasures/the-dedication-stone/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Dedication Stone}}}}
• {{cite web|title=The Four Evangelists|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/visitor-experience/hidden-treasures/the-four-evangelists/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Four Evangelists}}}}
• {{cite web|title=Milestones|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/interesting-amusing/milestones/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Milestones}}}}
• {{cite web|title=Katharina von Württemberg|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/interesting-amusing/figures/katharina-von-wuerttemberg/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Katharina von Württemberg}}}}
• {{cite web|title=Wilhelm I. von Württemberg|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/interesting-amusing/figures/wilhelm-i-von-wuerttemberg/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Wilhelm I. von Württemberg}}}}
• {{cite web|title=Giovanni Battista Salucci|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/interesting-amusing/figures/giovanni-battista-salucci/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Giovanni Battista Salucci}}}}
• {{cite web|title=What's in a Name?|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/interesting-amusing/anecdotes/whats-in-a-name/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: What's in a Name?}}}}
• {{cite web|title=The Grand Duchess and the Crown Prince|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/interesting-amusing/anecdotes/the-grand-duchess-and-the-crown-prince/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Grand Duchess and the Crown Prince}}}}
• {{cite web|title=The Poem|url=https://www.grabkapelle-rotenberg.de/en/interesting-amusing/anecdotes/the-poem/|publisher=Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg|accessdate=6 February 2020|ref={{sfnref|Württemberg Mausoleum: Poem}}}}; Russian: "Над виноградными холмами".

{{refend}}

• {{Official website}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wurttemberg Mausoleum}}

Category:Buildings and structures in Stuttgart

Category:Mausoleums in Germany

Category:Tourist attractions in Stuttgart

Category:Eastern Orthodox church buildings in Germany

Category:Eastern Orthodox cemeteries in Germany

Category:Burial sites of the House of Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov

Category:Burial sites of the House of Württemberg