Bayreuth - Planning for NS documentation center progresses
The plans for a Nazi documentation center in Bayreuth are progressing. The Richard Wagner Foundation is closely involved - it will provide academic support for the planned center and oversee its organization and content. The city wants to install the documentation center in the immediate vicinity of the Richard Wagner Museum, including in the former home of Houston Stewart Chamberlain (1855-1927), Richard Wagner's son-in-law and a pioneer of racism and anti-Semitism in the Festival's circle of influence.
It is not yet clear when the center will be able to open. "All forecasts in this regard should be treated with great caution," said a city spokesperson. "Our cultural department is optimistically hoping that the documentation center for the history of Nazi ideology could open in 2029 or 2030."
Adolf Hitler - friend of the Wagners
A framework of racism, anti-Semitism and völkisch ideology developed around the festival, which the National Socialists exploited. Adolf Hitler was an ardent admirer of Richard Wagner's works and a frequent guest in Bayreuth - as a friend of the Wagner family.
A calculation from 2022 showed costs of 23.1 million euros for the project. This includes the renovation of the Chamberlain House and the establishment of the center there as well as the inclusion of the former residence of NSDAP Gauleiter Hans Schemm. Extensive state funding is in prospect, including from the federal government, the spokesperson added.
The Richard Wagner Foundation runs the Richard Wagner National Archive and the Richard Wagner Museum in Bayreuth. Since the expansion of the museum, the critical examination of the history of Wagner's ideological reception and impact has been a focus of the research and educational work, according to a statement from the city.
Jean-Paul-Museum moves
The Jean-Paul-Museum will have to relocate in order to set up the documentation center. It is currently still housed in the Chamberlain House. The contrast between the imaginative, dreamy poet, who was born in Wunsiedel in 1763 and died in Bayreuth in 1824, and the racist ideologue Chamberlain could not be greater. The Jean Paul Museum is to move into the poet's former home.
There are already large and well-known Nazi documentation centers at Bavarian locations that are significant for the history of National Socialism: on the Obersalzberg in Berchtesgaden, in Munich and in Nuremberg on the former Nazi Party Rally Grounds.
Jean-Paul-Museum Richard-Wagner-Museum
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- The plans for a Nazi documentation center in Bayreuth, a city in Bavaria, Germany, are progressing, with the Richard Wagner Foundation providing academic support and overseeing its organization and content.
- Richard Wagner, a prominent figure in Bayreuth, had a close relationship with Adolf Hitler, who was an ardent admirer of Wagner's works and a frequent guest in Bayreuth as a friend of the Wagner family.
- As part of the project, the Jean-Paul-Museum will need to relocate from the Chamberlain House to make room for the documentation center, as the contrast between the imaginative poet Jean-Paul and the racist ideologue Houston Stewart Chamberlain is stark.
- Extensive state funding is expected for the project, which includes the renovation of the Chamberlain House and the inclusion of the former residence of NSDAP Gauleiter Hans Schemm, as well as the operation of the Richard Wagner National Archive and the Richard Wagner Museum in Bayreuth.
- There are already established Nazi documentation centers at several significant locations in Bavaria, including the Obersalzberg in Berchtesgaden, Munich, and the former Nazi Party Rally Grounds in Nuremberg.
Source: www.stern.de
