ESSEN, Germany — To say that Essen has reinvented itself would be an understatement.
Once inextricably associated with the coal mines, steel plants and armaments factories of the Ruhr Valley, as well as with the storied Krupp family empire, Essen was an integral cog in Germany’s industrial heartland.
So central was Essen to Nazi Germany’s war effort that it was incessantly bombed by the Allies, leaving it in desolate ruins.
But that was then.
With Germany having surrendered to the Allies after World War II, Essen was forced to close its steel and weapons plants. Coal mines were also shuttered when it was understood that the mining of coal was no longer economically viable or environmentally sound.
Amid adversity and uncertainty, Essen, in North Rhine-Westphalia, submitted itself to a painful process of restructuring, the likes of which have rarely been seen in modern times.
Today, with more than three-quarters of its work force employed in management, retailing, services and cultural pursuits, Essen has succeeded in regenerated itself. So much so that the European Union, of which Germany is a member, has designated Essen, population 580,000, as its cultural capital for 2010.
Essen’s association with coal mining goes back to the mid-15th century, while its niche as an arms manufacturer was forged in the 16th century. The first steel factory in Germany, founded by Friedrich Krupp, arose in 1811.
Its most famous landmark, the 100-hectare Zollverein complex, a UNESCO World Heritage site, consists of a coal mine and a coking plant, which were closed in 1986 and 1993 respectively.
In its heyday, Essen had 22 coal mines, with 60,000 workers, that produced about 12,000 tons per day. During World War II, the mines and the factories were reliant on slave labourers, some of whom were Jewish.
Today, there is not a single working coal mine in Essen. The remaining four coal mines in the Ruhr Valley are expected to close in 2018.
Although the coal shafts were closed for good, the Zollverein complex was left intact and turned into a cultural and tourist mecca.
Declared Germany’s 25th World Heritage site in 2001, the Zollverein is a jumble of mammoth machinery, blast furnaces, colossal conveyor belts and spaces for art studios.
Tourists get their first glimpse of the Zollverein’s vast interior by ascending a 58-metre escalator, which brings them into the Ruhr Visitor Centre, a former coal washing factory.
The Ruhr Museum gives them an historical, natural and cultural overview of the region, while the Red Dot Museum is a showplace of contemporary design.
Classical, pop and jazz concerts, and art exhibits and plays, take place at the Zollverein.
Apart from the Zollverein, Essen’s cultural facilities range from the Aalto Opera House and the Lichtburg Theatre to the Grillo Theatre.
Designed by the Finnish architect Alvar Aalto, the Opera House is known for its curved facade and stellar productions.
The Lichtburg Theatre, one of the oldest movie houses in Germany, has been the venue of a succession of film premieres since 1928. Gary Cooper walked down its red carpet for the premiere of the Hollywood western, High Noon.
The Grillo Theatre presents classic plays by Shakespeare through Schiller and showcases the work of young playwrights from all over the world.
Next year, a permanent exhibition of Jewish life in Essen will open at the Alte Synagogue, a huge limestone-clad shul that was partially destroyed on Kristallnacht in 1938 and is now being renovated. The project is under the supervision of the city.
Remarkably green, Essen has a myriad of parks, but the finest one is Gruga Park, a 70-hectare recreational area dense with trees and shrubs, ablaze with flowers and dotted with sculptures by the likes of Henry Moore and Auguste Rodin. In addition, there are picnic tables and benches, children’s playgrounds and a spa.
The Krupp historical presence in Essen is best viewed at Villa Hugel, in one of Essen’s elegant suburbs.
A mansion built between 1870 and 1873 by Alfred Krupp (1812-1887), it was intended as a residence for himself and his family. The Krupps, one of Germany’s richest families, were steel and armaments manufacturers. The company, which was founded by Friedrich Krupp in 1810, evolved into the largest industrial concern in Germany by the time his son, Alfred, died.
Villa Hugel, Alfred’s 8,100-square metre sumptuous refuge, employed as many as 648 servants. Its last resident, Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach, was forced to leave the house in 1945 after he was accused of using forced labourers. By all accounts, Krupp enterprises exploited about 100,000 such workers, the majority of whom were Jews. At the Nuremberg war crimes trial, Alfried was sentenced to 12 years in prison, only to be pardoned in 1951.
Villa Hugel was returned to the Krupps in 1952, but has since been a museum administered by the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation.
The museum, set on the grounds of a magnificent estate replete with gardens and fountains, charts the history of the Krupps through photographs and various artifacts.
There is no attempt to whitewash the family’s dark underside. Passports of slave labourers are displayed under glass. Blownup photographs of Alfried, as he is arrested by the U.S. army and as he is seated at his trial, are prominently hung on walls. A notice reminds visitors that Krupp has twice compensated surviving slave workers, first in 1959 and then in 1999.
The Krupp art collection is nothing short of amazing, what with its paintings and drawings by Paul Cezanne, Claude Monet, Edouard Manet, Honoree Daumier, Pierre Auguste Renoir, Henri Matisse and Ernst Kirchner.
The last Krupp, Alfried, died in 1967, and his son, Arndt, renounced his inheritance. Arndt passed away in 1986, just one short year of the 400th anniversary of the family’s arrival in Essen.
Yet the Krupp name lives on. Close to a replica of the modest cottage where Friedrich Krupp resided, and where one of its steel casting foundaries was established long ago, the Krupp Group, which merged with its competitor Thyssen AG in 1999, is constructing new headquarters.
A circle has thus been closed.
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For further information about Essen, contact the German National Tourist Office in Toronto, 480 University Ave., suite 1500. The phone number: 416-598-5353. More information can be found at www.cometogermany.com.
Lufthansa German Airlines has daily flights to Germany from Canada.