Throughout Germany you can find many statues and memorials in form of towers created for three persons: Otto von Bismarck, Wilhelm I, and his grandson Wilhelm II. They’ve mostly been funded by donations of the citizens. That is also the case with the tower overlooking Marburg an der Lahn: It was built in 1887 to commemorate the creation of the German Empire and the victory in the Franco-Prussian War in 1870/1871. It was named Kaiser-Wilhelm-Turm after Wilhelm I, king in Prussia.
On the outside of the tower the 13 fallen people of Marburg an der Lahn during the war in 1870/1871 are named. Most people today call the tower Spiegelslustturm, because it is located at a place named Spiegelslust. From there you have excellent views on the city, the Landgrafenschloss and the Elisabethkirche. An officer called Köhler found this place and it became known as ‘Köhlersruhe‘, later the student von Spiegel zum Desenberg maintained and extended the place as a place of excursions and therefore it became renamed to ‘Spiegelslust‘.
When von Spiegel left, the city administration took over the grounds and created a restaurant in the 1860s. That made it the ideal place to create the 36 meters high tower, a building process that was only successful in the second round; the first tower was destroyed during a storm. Today you can get here to enjoy the excellent views from Spiegelslust or to climb the 167 steps up to the top (for a small fee).
In 2006 a light installation called Siebensiebenzwölfnullsieben was added to the tower. It was created by a local artist and the name is the birthdate of the saint Elisabeth (7.7.1207) as well as a phone number: when you call +49 (9005) 771207 the light at the tower gets activated (and you’ll be charged 99 cents which will be donated to a charity). The light installation shows a heart that is in fact an enlarged version of an ornament at the Elisabethkirche. Light up the dark!
If you want to get up you can hike to the tower, but it is a steep ascent. Around 200 meters in height must be taken. Alternatively you can get there by car or by bus: the bus lines 7 and 2 take you to hospital of Marburg/Gießen. From there it is a 15 minutes walk to the tower.
Kaiser-Wilhelm-Turm
Spiegelslust
Lahnberge
Marburg an der Lahn
Germany
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