The City of Ploen's History Places of Interest Picture Gallery
The pretty small town of Ploen is situated “right in the water” - surrounded by 16 lakes. You can stroll through the spacious castle quarter or you might promenade through the old town with its picturesque alleyways (”Twieten”) and small shops. Or you might just take your time and enjoy your holiday - eating a sundae or tasting one of those excellent bread rolls being served with the local fish.
Round Tour through the Historic Monument Ploen
Even outside of the old part of town you will find traces of days long
gone by. This starts with the train station which is classified as a
historic monument. The station was inaugurated in 1866 when Ploen was
connected to the railway system and waffitted with a wooden canopy that
was originally part of the “Emperor’s Train Stop”.
Start your tour into history at a building carrying the name of one of
the town gates - “Lübsches Tor”. The “Stadtschwentine”- a part of the
river that had probably been built as an artificial canal– delimits the
old part of the city. Just about in the proximity of the present weir
the hydropower of the river was used to drive flour-, paper- and
cloth-mills. Having reached the market square a massive brick building
with a cross-shaped layout and a steeple rising 60 meters above the
ground – deriving from the 19th century - will come into sight – the
Nikolaikirche (church). Being the successor of a burnt-down baroque
church its architectural design was based on medieval Gothic and
Romanic stylistic elements. The remains of the foundation walls, which
had been left over by the fire, were integrated into the construction.
Less then 100 meters behind the Nikolaikirche the slightly elevated
Rathaus (town hall) will catch your eye. Notice that the building
clearly consists of two elements – the brick building that accommodated
the municipality as well as the county court - and the building in the
rear, which had housed the grammar school.
On your way from the church to the town hall the narrow alleyways –
called “Twieten” – leading to the main shopping street “Lange Straße” -
will catch your attention. Further alleyways can be found branching off
the Klosterstraße down to the Big Ploen Lake. The lake served
in former times as natural reservoir for drinking- and industrial
use-water. Resulting from the high and narrow architecture in the Old
Town there was a constant fire danger. That is why the “Twieten” often
had to serve as fire-fighting lanes.
The Wentorfer Tor (town gate) marked the Western boundary of the Old
Town of Ploen. The only relic of the former town gate is the mount
stone of one of the gate’s hinges, marking the entrance. The stone
carries deep marks from one of the gate wings.
Entering the New Town you will see the Alte Apotheke (old apothecary),
which is dating from 1540 and one the oldest houses still to be found
in town. Originally built as an aristocratic residence, it was in later
centuries used as an orphanage. It also served as living quarters for
the Nobles, the staff of the duke’s court and as working and living
place for the chemist by appointment to the court. Since 1982 the
building accommodates
the museum of the County of Ploen.
In the Johannisstraße - starting at
the Old Apothecary – none of the small 26 craftsmen’s houses, which had
originally been built around 1685, are left. One can still recognize
the historic layout of the street as line of sight pointing towards the
castle, symbolizing the close affiliation of the town to the
principality.
The Johanniskirche (church) vis-à-vis the Old Apothecary was also built
in 1685. The church had originally been laid out in a pure baroque
design. When the derelict church was almost torn down in the middle of
the 19th century the reconstruction was carried out in new gothic
style. Fortunately the special atmosphere of the church prevailed.
You
will find further information of the attractions of the Old Town on our Kunst- und Kulturseiten.
Round Tour through the Castle District of Ploen
The Castle District of Ploen with its affectionately renovated
buildings, its generous green spaces and it’s shady avenues situated
above the Old Town is a “must” for every visitor of the region. More
than one dozen buildings, which all originate between the 17th and 19th
century, are part of the castle district. This all adds up to one of
the most beautiful sites of this kind to be found in
Schleswig-Holstein.
You will reach the Castle of Ploen via the
Schlossberg (castle hill) along the town hall of Ploen. The castle is
the regal core of the castle district. Built in the 17th century it
went through ever changing times as domicile of the Duke, summer
residence of the Danish king, Prussian Cadet School, boarding
school…Today the castle is the property of the Fielmann Akademie, which
is to use the premises as an international institute for the vocational
training of opticians.
Stroll down the Schlossberg on the other side and on the right hand
side another building – the indoor swimming pool, constructed in the
style of Art Nouveau and especially built for the sons of the German
emperors. Today it accommodates the Kulturforum Schwimmhalle (Cultural
Forum “Indoor Swimming Pool”). Here a wide variety of cultural events
such as expositions, concerts and readings take place.
Starting from
there you will discover the following attractions:
Around the former Hippodrome (Reitbahn), which formerly served as
tournament- and parade-ground, we find diverse buildings built in
different centuries. The former Clock House (Uhrenhaus) at the end of
the square is nowadays the domicile of the Information Centre of the
Natural Park “Holsteinische Schweiz”. During the rule of the dukes the
baroque indoor riding arena was used for riding tournaments.
The Marstall (Ducal Stables) on the left side of the square was built
by the duke during the 18th century for horse breeding and sports an
emblematical group of sculptures over its main entrance. Nowadays the
building accommodates flats and commercial facilities.
Situated next to the stables the Lazarett (Military Hospital) was built
in the same period as the cadet school and cared for the sick of that
Institution. When the cadet school was converted to a regular boarding
school the building became a dormitory for first grade pupils.
After having been renovated it was converted to condominiums.
On your way to the palace garden you will be guided straight to the
Prinzenhaus (Princes’ House) – affectionately being called “the pearl
of baroque”. It had originally been used as a summerhouse and gained
its present name because it later served as classroom for the sons of
the last German emperor.
The Prinzenhaus is surrounded by buildings that were later added to the
ensemble:
Parts of these are the Schlossökonomie (utility building), the Backhaus
(bakery), the Beamtenwohnhaus (clerks’ living quarters), the
Kompanieverwalterhaus (house for the military company’s civil clerk).
These buildings are located in the vicinity of the Melonengarten (melon
garden) and the spacious Schloßgarten (palace garden), which is framed
by park avenues with their linden trees. The avenues – passing by
Siebenstern and Kadettenfriedhof (cadets’ cemetery) lead to the beach
trail an to the beautifully situated Prinzeninsel (princes’ Island).
You will find further information concerning the attractions in the
area around the castle on our Kunst- und Kulturseiten.