The Bismarck Tower in Iserlohn ( German: Bismarckturm in Iserlohn ) is a monument tower (memorial tower), built in 1914-1915 in the city of Iserlohn in honor of the former German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck .
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History
The first projects to create a national monument in honor of former German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck appeared in Iserlohn in 1911. On April 1, 1913, the local committee decided to establish a commission for the construction of the tower. For the construction of the memorial, which, in addition to its main function, would also serve as an observation tower, the city residents for a short time collected donations worth 25,000 gold marks . Four projects of the future tower were presented to the commission at once: as a result of the competition, the project of architects August Doyker ( German August Deucker ) and Karl Hoffman ( German Karl Hofmann , 1856-1933) was selected. At the same time, before the start of construction, the city of Iserlohn did not own the land on which the tower stands today - a site on the lake, an area of 6 acres , was acquired for 3600 marks. Before construction began, the best place for a future stone structure was found using a wooden tower model.
Water needed for construction work came from a well drilled specifically for the project. Sandstone ( greywacke ), used as the main building material, was mined in a nearby quarry . Basaltic lava was used for the portal and the bowl of fire mounted on top. The total cost of the memorial amounted to 28,000 marks [1] . The first stone in the foundation of the tower was laid after the outbreak of the First World War , September 6, 1914; the grand opening took place on March 31, 1915. The next day - the day of the centenary of Bismarck's birth - a fire was first lit in a bowl. Until the end of the Great War, the tower was used as an air observation point.
During the Second World War , in 1940, the tower was used by the Wehrmacht , and after the war, the British military used it as a radio control center. Citizens were allowed to visit the tower only in 1955 - while from 1957 to 1989, fire did not burn on the top of the tower. In 1975, Bismarckturm officially became part of the city of Iserlohn. During the big celebration of the 75th anniversary of the construction of the tower, in 1990, Mayor Fritz Fischer re-lit the fire in a new gas bowl - a memorial plaque was erected on the tower after the celebration of the anniversary.
Description
The Bismarck Tower stands at an altitude of 338 m above sea level in the area of Lake Seilersee (the height from the surface of the lake at the base of the tower is about 130 meters), being a landmark of the neighboring city of Iserlohn . To the north-east of the tower is the city of Hemer , and to the north-west is the historic Maste-Barendorf factory .
The tower has a square base with a side length of 7.5 m. The observation deck is located at a height of 11 meters: to climb it you need to overcome a stone staircase in 44 steps and a spiral staircase with 13 steps. The total height of the tower is 14.5 m. From 1988 to 1995, the tower worked regularly; as of the beginning of the 21st century, a preliminary arrangement with the city administration was required to climb the tower. In addition, the building was open to visitors on Sundays from April to September. The tower was also equipped with eight solar panels , invisible from the ground, but generating electricity for relaying a local amateur radio station .
See also
- Danzturm
- Bismarck Tower in Ludenscheid
Notes
- ↑ Thomas Pütter. Bismarckturm wird 100 Jahre alt (German) . ikz-online.de . Iserlohner Kreisanzeiger und Zeitung (4. Februar 2015). Date of treatment January 17, 2019.
Literature
- Seele, Sieglinde: Lexikon der Bismarck-Denkmäler, Imhof-Verlag Petersberg, 2005, S. 210
- Seele, Sieglinde, Mannheim (Archiv Seele): BISMARCK-TURM von ISERLOHN (Nordrhein-Westfalen)
- von Bismarck, Valentin: Bismarck-Feuersäulen u. Türme (unveröffentlichtes Manuskript); Nr. 193 "Bismarck-Feuersäule bei Iserlohn", 1900-1915, 1937 (im Archiv der Burschenschaft Alemannia, Bonn)
- Zeitschrift des Bismarck-Bundes: 12. Jahrgang 1914 (Nr. 1, S. 10)
- Timm, Willy: “Ihre Flammen lodern nicht mehr” in “Der Märker”, 1976, H. 2
- Götz Bettge. Iserlohn-Lexikon / Stadt Iserlohn. - 1. Aufl. - Iserlohn: Hans-Herbert Mönnig Verlag, 1987 .-- S. 196. - 592 S. - ISBN 3-922885-37-3 .
- Bau-Akte Amt Hemer 1915, Gemeinde Landhausen, Heft 1.
Links
- Bismarckturm Iserlohn (German) . Bismarcktürme und Bismarcksäulen (21.August 2018). Date of treatment November 2, 2018.