Hey'l, Ferdinand (eg. Heyl)

Actor, spa director

born: 07.10.1830 in Koblenz

died: 21.08.1897 in Wiesbaden

Hey'l made his debut as an actor in Magdeburg, followed by engagements in Braunschweig and Danzig. From 1856-72 he played at the court theater in Wiesbaden. In 1866, he wrote the pamphlet "Wiesbaden und seine Kurinteressen" (Wiesbaden and its spa interests) and subsequently became head of the municipal spa office on March 1, 1870. In 1873 he was appointed spa director.

Prior to this, he had already been a journalistic advocate for the interests of the city and the region on several occasions. With the "Humoristisch-Satyrischen Streiflichtern aus der Welt-Cur-Stadt Wie's-Baden. Ein Wegweiser für Einheimische und Fremde" and the "Humoristische Erinnerungsblatt an das dritte mittelrheinische Musikfest zu Wiesbaden", both published in 1858, he contributed to the reputation of the cosmopolitan spa town. Hey'l's 200-page tourist guide "Wiesbaden und seine Umgebungen" (Wiesbaden and its surroundings) was published in numerous editions from 1860 until the 1930s, also in English (1871) and French (1870). His "Proposals for the Operation of the Municipal Cur Administration", written in 1871, provided important impetus as an internal expert opinion.

Hey'l was one of the initiators of the national monument on the Niederwald near Rüdesheim, which was inaugurated on September 28, 1883 and for which he wrote an essay in the "Rheinischer Kurier" on April 13, 1871. This was followed by the founding of a committee in Wiesbaden, in which he, together with the poets Rittershaus, Scherenberg and Ferdinand Freiligrath, campaigned for the Niederwald as the site of a national monument to be created. The Prussian district president in Wiesbaden, Botho Graf zu Eulenburg, took up this idea, came to an agreement with Chancellor Bismarck and Kaiser Wilhelm I and founded a memorial committee on September 29, 1871, which included municipal representatives from politics, business and culture as well as from the surrounding smaller towns. The town of Rüdesheim made Hey'l an honorary citizen on 13.04.1896 and named a street after him.

Hey'l is also considered the spiritual father of the Wiesbaden carnival and the "Sprudel" society. He was a popular carnival speaker and chaired the Sprudel presidium until 1890.

As spa director, Hey'l promoted the construction of the new Kurhaus. In 1891, impressed by the Kursaal in Scheveningen, he submitted a recommendation for a new Kurhaus for the first time and had the Wiesbaden architect Alfred Schellenberg draw up floor plans. In addition to the spacious design of the concert hall, the catering facilities and the utility and administration rooms, the plans included a large number of function rooms, the rental of which was to contribute to increasing the annual income to 100,000 marks. In this sense, Hey'l also supported Felix Genzmer's memorandum on the "structural conversion or redesign of the Kurhaus in Wiesbaden" from March 1895.

The appeal for a Ferdinand Hey'l memorial from April 1898 states: "Ferdinand Hey'l, thanks to his zealous and restless endeavors, his special skills predestined for spa and bathing life, created the very model of the German spa director ..." (Rhein. Kurier 02.04.1898, morning edition).

Hey'l was the recipient of numerous medals and awards. His grave is located in the North Cemetery. The tomb was created by sculptor Hugo Berwald (1863-1937). In Wiesbaden, the Ferdinand-Hey'l-Weg is named after him.

Baumgart-Buttersack, Gretel: Ferdinand Hey'l: Kurdirektor in Wiesbaden. In: Wiesbadener Leben 1/1987 [p. 27 f.].

Baumgart-Buttersack, Gretel: Actor and spa director. Ferdinand Hey'l's tireless activities for the city. In: Wiesbadener Leben 8/1995, [p. 25].

Engelhard, Rudolf: The Niederwald Monument, Wiesbaden 1973.

Schabe, Peter: Felix Genzmer - Architect of late historicism in Wiesbaden. Early creative years 1881-1903. Wiesbaden 1997 (Publications of the Historical Commission for Nassau 62).