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Description

The Stavenhagen Castle was built on the foundations of the old fortress of Knight Reimbern von Stove, but was never used as an aristocratic residence, which is why the term ´castle´ could also be put in quotations. Knight von Stove established a settlement in the 13th century, for which he was the namesake. The original village of Stovenhagen became the present-day name of Reuterstadt. However, the fortress was severely damaged during the Thirty Years War and fell into disrepair. In 1740, a castle was built on the cellar vault, which was referred to as "still good". It was originally intended as a widow´s residence, but it was never inhabited and was therefore used as an official residence. It then served as the administrative seat of the Domanialamt with living quarters, utility rooms and servant´s rooms. The two-storey stucco building in the style of classical baroque consists of a main house with eleven axes, two wings and a mansard roof. The round staircase tower on the southeast courtyard corner was not added until 1890. Later the local court moved into the premises. From the castle, bailiffs and later officials managed the lands of Penzlin, Waren and Malchin. After the Second World War, the castle served as living quarters for resettlers. In 1953, there were renovation works, after which the building was used for educational purposes and later as a recreation centre. It wasn´t until 1995 that the baroque castle was taken over by the city of Stavenhagen. Unfortunately, the original architecture was severely worn due to the various previous uses. In 1997, the city decided to use the building as a citizens´ and administrative centre and had it reconstructed and converted over the next two years for three million euros, including the installation of an elevator to make the rooms barrier-free. Today, the administrative headquarters with an impressive conference hall and the registry office, where the first happy couples were married on 9th September 1999, are located in Stavenhagen Castle. The castle is the main setting in Reuters´ novel "Ut de Franzosentid". In the expanded cellar vault, there are two old dungeons. The entire castle ensemble with the castle courtyard, Schlossbergstraße and the park, which was renovated from 2001 to 2006, together with the castle wall, is a major attraction and a defining feature of the townscape. The park, equipped with newly designed green spaces, seating areas and a large playground, invites visitors to linger, and the festival meadow provides space for large urban events. Unfortunately, today there are only a few elements from the original period left in the interior of the castle. The building, however, is one of the few testimonies of the baroque era in the region, which still exudes a unified overall effect. With the courageous decision by the city council and mayor in the nineties to repurpose this important historic landmark as an administrative center, they not only utilized the last chance to preserve it for future generations, but also largely guaranteed public access. This allows visitors to enjoy insights into the loving details of the baroque architecture until today.