Preußische Hauptkadettenanstalt

The Preußische Hauptkadettenanstalt ("Royal Prussian Main Cadet's Institute") in Groß-Lichterfelde near Berlin, was the main military academy training officer corps of the Prussian Army from 1882 to 1919. From 1933 till 1945, the building complex housed the SS Division Leibstandarte.[1]

History

Before the Berlin Cadet Corps relocated to Lichterfelde, it was housed from 1717 to 1777 in the so-called Old Cadet House on the grounds of the former Hetzgarten (a former hunting ground) in Berlin-Mitte (located in Bastion 9 of the fortifications). The older building there was demolished in 1777 and replaced by a more impressive new Cadet House on the same site.

In 1866, Johann Anton Wilhelm Carstenn purchased the Lichterfelde and Giesensdorf estates to establish the villa colonies of Lichterfelde-West and Lichterfelde-East near Berlin. He subdivided the land, had avenues and squares laid out, and stipulated villa construction. To boost the initially slow sales, he donated approximately 21 hectares of land in Lichterfelde-West to the Prussian state in 1871 for the construction of a new cadet academy. Carstenn relied on the improved image resulting from the relocation of the highly regarded institution to Lichterfelde, as well as the increased demand for land from the officers, who in the German Empire almost exclusively came from aristocratic families. With the donation agreement, he committed himself to developing the barracks grounds and establishing a transport connection. To this end, Siemens & Halske opened the world's first electrically operated tramway in 1881 from Lichterfelde station (later Groß-Lichterfelde B.H., today Lichterfelde Ost) on the Berlin–Halle railway line (B.H.), initially only for transporting materials to the construction site of the main cadet academy. The Lichterfelde–cadet academy tramway was extended in 1890 to Groß-Lichterfelde B.M. station (today Lichterfelde West) on the Berlin–Magdeburg railway line (B.M.).

To this end, Siemens & Halske opened the world's first electrically operated tramway in 1881 from Lichterfelde station (later Groß-Lichterfelde B.H., today Lichterfelde Ost) on the Berlin–Magdeburg railway line (B.M.). Carstenn's concept was so successful that the villa district of Lichterfelde is still characterized today by the Prussian-conservative upper class originally attracted by the cadet academy. He himself lost his considerable fortune due to the financial obligations associated with the construction of the academy and, from 1887 onward, lived on an annual pension of 43,000 marks (equivalent to approximately €385,000 in today's currency), along with a one-time payment of 180,000 marks to compensate for his financial ruin.

On 1 September 1873, in the presence of Kaiser Wilhelm I, the foundation stone for the new main cadet academy was laid on what was then Zehlendorfer Straße (renamed Finckensteinallee in June 1933). By 1878, magnificent buildings designed by August Ferdinand Fleischinger and Gustav Voigtel had been erected there, including teaching and administrative buildings, two churches (one of which quickly became famous as the "Cadet Cathedral"), the impressive Field Marshal's Hall, a dining hall, stables, a gymnasium, a military hospital, and a large number of staff apartments. In 1878, the cadet academy moved from its cramped quarters in the city to the new buildings in Lichterfelde-West, where it remained the most important institution of its kind in the German Empire until its dissolution in 1920.

Former students (excerpt)

References

  1. ^ "From Military to Civilian Use of the Grounds (1878-1933)". The New Building of the Federal Archives in Berlin.
  2. ^ Ludolf Herbst: Hitlers Charisma – Die Erfindung eines deutschen Messias. Fischer, Frankfurt 2010, ISBN 978-3-10-033186-1.
  3. ^ Seuberlich, Wolfgang (1971). Lydia Brüll, Ulrich Kemper (ed.). Yin-ch'ang Aufzeichnungen über einen Mandschu-General und Diplomaten der übergangszeit. Asien. Tradition und Fortschrift (in German). Translated by Erich Gütinger. Wiesbaden: Tradition und Fortschrift. Festschrift für Horst Hammitzsch zu seinem 60. Geburtstag, Harrassowitz Verlag. pp. 569–583.


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