| Castle
Ruin to a Modern Gem |
| By Sabine
Gammel |
| April 2006
Just 45miles
east of the vivid city of Hamburg and a short hours drive from the German
capital Berlin, you can find this wonderful Castle.
Built in 1822
by the famous Danish architect Joseph Christian Lillie for the wealthy
Von Laffert family, Lehsen Castle was originally surrounded by more than
a hundred hectares (about 250acres) of park like garden complete
with orangerie, mausoleum, forest and farmland.
The last heir,
Carl August von Laffert, sold the castle in the summer of 1899 to a farmer
from Duesseldorf, who owned the property until 1928. |
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| It was
then bought by a businessman from the principality of Liechtenstein
who quickly discovered he could not afford the upkeep and once again the
unlucky castle was passed to a new owner, an agricultural development company
which settled 34 farmers on the grand estate.
Five years
later, the company went into liquidation and the poor farmers ended
up shouldering the massive debt.
In 1935 the
castle stood empty for the first time in its long history.
During World
War II the castle served as a convalescent home for mothers and later on
as a maternity hospital, before being handed to the state of the German
Democratic Republic to house a children’s home. Sadly, lack of investment
led to the castle’s demise and a plan to tear it down.
A last minute
reprieve came in the form of the local municipal council which used
the grand old mansion as offices and from 1970/90 the local people of the
village of Lehsen |
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to raise money to keep their treasured castle from ruin.
Alas,
the castle was too big and the coffers too small and for nearly ten years
the castle stood empty once again.
In 1999,
a private investor fell in love with Lehsen castle and with seemingly limitless
time and money, restored the property to its former high standard.
By this time
the original estate had been reduced to 14 hectares (about 33 acres)
as much of the land had previously been sold to clear debts; but the remaining
park was beautifully re - established with baroque sculptures and a magnificent
pond.
Inside,
the rooms have marble floors and crystal chandeliers, and golden fittings
in the luxurious bathrooms. |
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Offshore
Resources Gallery
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| In the ‘hunt
room’ each massive hand carved wooden chair has its own motif.
State of
the art technology includes an all encompassing alarm system; there
are five garages and a 150metre driving range should you wish to improve
your golf handicap.
If you become
the proud owner of this modern fairytale your property also includes a
beautiful landscaped park with big shady trees, a prestigious gate with
impressive driveway and a deer park.
Castle Lehsen
actually looks more like a small version of The White House, seat of the
US government, so why not preside over your own domain.y
More information’s
and other fantastic properties :
sabine.gammel@remax.de |
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Index ~ Germany
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