National ideology, anti-Semitism – and Adolf Hitler as a welcome guest and friend of the Wagner family: the city of Bayreuth wants to work through this dark past in a documentation center.
However, the Chamberlain House currently houses the museum dedicated to Jean Paul (1763-1825). The contrast between the imaginative, dreamy poet, who was born in Wunsiedel and died in Bayreuth, and the racist ideologue Chamberlain could not be greater. According to the city’s plans, the Jean Paul Museum is to move soon – to Jean Paul’s former home. The culture committee has now approved.
A framework of racism, anti-Semitism and ethnic ideology developed in the atmosphere of the festival, which the National Socialists took advantage of. Adolf Hitler was an ardent admirer of Richard Wagner’s works and was often a guest in Bayreuth – as a friend of the Wagner family. According to a recent statement by the municipality, few cities are associated with the Nazi regime as strongly as Bayreuth.
Funded by the federal government
The federal government has therefore promised the city funding of up to around 11.6 million euros. A town hall spokesman explained that the focus is currently on acquiring third-party funds. Overall, the costs are expected to be around 23 million euros. In addition to the Chamberlain House, the documentation center for the history of Nazi ideology will also include other sites, such as a house in the city center that the city recently bought and that is now to be renovated. The Wilhelm Leuschner memorial, which commemorates the trade unionist and Nazi resistance fighter Wilhelm Leuschner who was born in Bayreuth, is also to be integrated.
The city has not yet announced when the center can be expected to open. “Unfortunately, this question cannot be answered seriously at the moment. Several years of planning are expected before the renovation work can be carried out,” said the spokesman. Mayor Thomas Ebersberger (CSU) and cultural advisor Benedikt Stegmayer are very interested in “realizing the project as quickly as possible”.
There are already large and well-known Nazi documentation centers in Bavaria that are important for the history of National Socialism: on the Obersalzberg in Berchtesgaden, in Munich and in Nuremberg on the former Nazi Party Rally Grounds. (dpa)