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Historicism in Wiesbaden

Wiesbaden is a thoroughly 19th century city. This unique development is based on how today's capital of Hesse made rapid strides during that century from being a modestly small town of 2,500 inhabitants in 1800 to becoming a large city of 100,000 in 1905.
Historicism in Wiesbaden
Historicism in Wiesbaden© wiesbaden.de

This unusual growth drove new construction at a furious pace. Historicism's surprising changes in form and variety of styles are the reasons why this development did not results in monotonous mass construction which can quickly be the response to an urgent need for residential space.

Of course, Wiesbaden continued to develop over the past 100 years, and today the city also reflects architectural form language of the 20th century. Nevertheless, since the city was fortunate enough to have survived the Second World War with only relatively moderate damage, today it is the most important "urban monument to Historicism in Germany" (Professor Gottfried Kiesow).

This moved the City Council and the Municipal Executive to apply for a listing in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

In connection with this application, numerous events will be held under the umbrella of a declared Year of Historicism to draw the attention of both inhabitants and visitors to the city's architectural significance.

100 Examples of Historicism

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