Ahaus is a town of about 40,000 inhabitants in the district of Borken in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is located near the border with the Netherlands, 20 km southeast of the Dutch town Enschede and 15 km south of Gronau.
Ahaus Castle or Schloss Ahaus from the 11th century is a former residence of the Prince Bishops of Munster in western Munsterland. The moated castle is located directly in the city center, adjacent to the new pedestrian zone of Ahaus with the market square and the tourist information. Ahaus Castle is the location of the 100 Castles Route through Münsterland.
Unfortunately, we arrived during the renovation of the castle. Scaffolding with safety nets was placed on the front of the castle. The museum and the building were also closed at the time of our visit. I hope that we will again visit this city and moated castle and complete the story with videos, photos, and stories to the end.
Lothar von Supplingburg, Duke of Saxony and later emperor, ordered the nobleman Bernhard I von Diepenheim to build a castle in the area of Ahaus. The forerunner of the castle was built between 1115 and 1125 under the name “Haus an der Aa”.
Lifhard, a son of Bernhard I, gave himself the name “von Ahaus” in the middle of the 12th century. In 1177, the Bishop of Munster completely destroyed the castle together with his allies, the Count of Tecklenburg and Bernhard II zur Lippe, after the Ahauser sided with Henry the Lion. Johann I, Lifhard’s son, started rebuilding straight away. In 1406 the noble family of Ahaus, the knight Gottfried von Rohr and his wife Johanna van den Ahus sold the castle to the Bishop of Munster, Otto von Hoya.
On October 4, 1650, Prince Bishop of Munster Christoph Bernhard von Galen visited Ahaus. At his instigation, the first German faience manufactory was founded in Ahaus in 1653 but was closed again in 1657. In 1688 the old castle was demolished on the instructions of Prince Bishop Friedrich Christian von Plettenberg. The new building in the form of a baroque moated castle was built according to the plans of Ambrosius von Oelde and was completed in 1690. The entire complex, including the castle park, was only completed in 1718. When the work was completed, the new building cost around 100,000 thalers. After the destruction of the Seven Years’ War, Johann Conrad Schlaun added a central risalit with a large, double flight of stairs in the garden front between 1765 and 1767. The palace served as a summer residence for the prince-bishops of Münster. Prince Bishops Johann IV von Osnabrück, Christoph Bernhard von Galen, and Franz Arnold von Wolff-Metternich zur Gracht died at Ahaus Castle.
Through the Reichsdeputationshauptschluss in 1803, the castle passed to the princes of Salm-Salm and Salm-Kyrburg. Prince Moritz Zu Salm-Kyrburg resided there as regents in the Principality of Salm, later temporarily Frederick IV Zu Salm-Kyrburg and his wife Cécile-Rosalie, as well as his nephew. In 1819 Hermann Oldenkott built a tobacco factory in the castle’s north wing. In 1829 the company acquired the baroque palace from Prince Salm-Kyrburg. It served as a production site until 1929 and as a residence for the Oldenkott family until it was destroyed by a bomb attack in March 1945.
After the war, the district of Ahaus acquired the ruins and began reconstruction, which was largely completed in 1952, so that the Ahaus district vocational school could move into the castle. The palace park became the property of the city of Ahaus.
*Reichsdeputationshauptschluss – In order to compensate numerous German princes for the territories to the west of the Rhine that had been annexed by France as a result of the French Revolutionary Wars, the law secularized nearly 70 ecclesiastical states and abolished 45 imperial cities.
Prince Bishop of Munster, Christoph Bernhard von Galen (1606 – 1678) was born to Protestant parents from the noble von Galen family. He was a powerful and controversial figure known for his military campaigns against the Netherlands and his persecution of Protestants and witches. Christoph Bernhard von Galen died in Ahaus Castle.
His nickname in Holland is “Bommen Berend” (“Bombardment of Bernard”) because he besieged the city of Groningen with artillery, and a holiday with this name is still celebrated in the city to commemorate the breaking of the siege
Lothar von Supplingburg, Duke of Saxony and later emperor, ordered the nobleman Bernhard I von Diepenheim to build a castle in the area of Ahaus. The forerunner of the castle was built between 1115 and 1125 under the name "Haus an der Aa".
Lifhard, a son of Bernhard I, gave himself the name "von Ahaus" in the middle of the 12th century. In 1177, the Bishop of Munster completely destroyed the castle together with his allies, the Count of Tecklenburg and Bernhard II zur Lippe, after the Ahauser sided with Henry the Lion. Johann I, Lifhard's son, started rebuilding straight away.
In 1406, the knight Gottfried von Rohr and his wife Johanna van den Ahus sold the castle to the Bishop of Munster, Otto von Hoya.
On October 4, 1650, Prince Bishop of Munster Christoph Bernhard von Galen visited Ahaus. At his instigation, the first German faience manufactory was founded in Ahaus in 1653 but was closed again in 1657.
The old castle was demolished on the instructions of Prince Bishop Friedrich Christian von Plettenberg. The new building in the form of a baroque moated castle was built in 1690.
After the Seven Years' War destruction, Johann Conrad Schlaun added a central realit with a large, double flight of stairs in the garden front between 1765 and 1767.
Through the Reichsdeputationshauptschluss (in English as the Final Recess or the Imperial Recess of 1803) in 1803, the castle passed to the princes of Salm-Salm and Salm-Kyrburg.
*Reichsdeputationshauptschluss - In order to compensate numerous German princes for the territories to the west of the Rhine that had been annexed by France as a result of the French Revolutionary Wars, the law secularized nearly 70 ecclesiastical states and abolished 45 imperial cities.
Hermann Oldenkott built a tobacco factory in the north wing of the castle. In 1829 the company acquired the baroque palace from Prince Salm-Kyrburg. It served as a production site until 1929 and as a residence for the Oldenkott family.
It was completely destroyed by a bomb attack in March 1945.
After the war, the district of Ahaus acquired the ruins and began reconstruction, which was largely completed in 1952. Ahaus district vocational school move into the castle. The palace park became the property of the city of Ahaus. Today the castle is the seat of the Technical Academy Ahaus and also houses the gatehouse and school museum.
The Ahauser School Museum has exhibits on the school and the way of learning in the 19th and 20th centuries. Around 10000 visitors in a year visit museum.
The castle is used for cultural events, most often for classical music concerts. The schedule of events is regularly updated on the website of the city of Ahaus.
The Ahaus Technical Academy holds seminars on various technologies. It is possible to attend all types of seminars: metal, plastic, network, CAD, wood, and many others.
In Gatehouse Museum is exposed nine hundred years old town history. A notable document that is exposed at the museum is the permanent mention of “Poorhouse”.
The Middle Ages was a time of famine and scarcity. In the start, churches were taking care of the poor and sick. Society care at that time was not regulated by the law.
The oldest document dates back to 1395 when the vicar determined that the poor of the community should receive a meal on Maundy Thursday. In the centuries that followed, other foundations were set up by Ahauser citizens, which made life easier for the poor.
“Poorhouse” in Ahaus was mentioned for the first time in 1498 and then confirmed again on May 6, 1538. The poorhouse was right next to the Coesfeld Gate.
The first Catholic church in Ahaus was built in the 14th century. The single-nave building was destroyed in a fire in 1400. Then a three-aisled church building was erected, complete with the 68 m high tower, which has been preserved to this day and was built between 1498 and 1519.
In 1963, due to structural defects, it was decided to demolish and rebuild. The bright, rectangular concrete building is characterized by lamella facades with stained glass on all sides.
The new church is also ironically referred to as “St. Hoarding”. To this end, Robert Gernhardt wrote an architecture-critical poem St. Horten in Ahaus. Under this designation, and not under the Assumption of Mary, this church was nominated for the “World’s Ugliest Church” competition on Twitter in October 2020.
The Villa van Delden in Ahaus is the city’s last magnificent 19th-century townhouse. The villa was bought by the city of Ahaus in 1989 and renovated. The villa and the park offer very different uses. Representative rooms are available for civil weddings. Exhibitions, meetings, and events can take place for up to 70 people. The park can be used for sculpture exhibitions and concerts.
