Burg Wissem: A Historic Castle and Picture Book Museum in Germany
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.5
- Popularity
- Medium
- Country
- Germany
- Primary era
- Early Modern
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Medieval, Early Modern, Modern
- Civilizations
- Duchy of Berg, German, Holy Roman Empire, Kingdom of Prussia
- Site type
- Military
- Remains
- Castle
On this page13 sections
History
Burg Wissem is a late-medieval castle in central Troisdorf, Germany, whose origins reach back to the Carolingian period, the eighth and ninth centuries associated with Charlemagne and his successors. Originally a moated castle, its present construction dates to the first half of the fifteenth century. The estate was formerly known as the free noble estate Wiesheim, a status that allowed representation in the territorial assembly. Rembold von Plettenberg was its first recorded owner, in 1435.
The Plettenberg and Zweiffel Families
In 1511, the estate passed by inheritance from the Plettenberg family to Johann of the Zweiffel noble family. From 1548, Johann’s son Caspar undertook major work at Wissem House. He renovated the estate and added the outer-bailey range, known as the Remise, a service building associated with a manor or castle.
Later Noble Ownership
Marriage and inheritance brought further changes in ownership. In 1646, the marriage of Johann Franz Gerhard von Cortenbach and Anna Klara von Zweiffel transferred the estate to the Cortenbach family. An inheritance agreement in 1784 passed it to Johann Ernst von Landsberg zu Olpe and subsequently to Franz Bernhard von Hocherbach.
Friedrich von Hövel inherited Burg Wissem in 1826 and sold it two years later to Ernst August von Beust. Baron Clemens von Loë acquired the estate from Beust in 1833. The descendants of Clemens von Loë sold Burg Wissem to the municipality of Troisdorf in 1939.
Municipal and Cultural Use
From 1945 to 1981, the manor house served as Troisdorf’s town hall. Since 1982, Burg Wissem has housed the Picture Book Museum, described as the only museum in Europe devoted to picture-book art and children’s-book illustration. Its collection surveys major movements and styles in picture-book illustration over the preceding hundred years.
The museum and surrounding cultural facilities expanded in the early twenty-first century. In 2001 and 2002, the tower room was enlarged with financial support from Heinz Murmann. The expanded space includes the Geerte Murmann Reading Room for children. In 2002, the Troisdorf Creative Workshop established a fourteen-station sensory-experience field in the park, based on ideas associated with Hugo Kükelhaus and intended to sharpen the human senses.
Further cultural facilities were added through the Regionale 2010 program. The additions included the Portal to the Wahner Heide, the Museum of Troisdorf Urban and Industrial History, the KennenLernenUmwelt program, a new marriage room, the Creative Workshop, rooms for the local history and historical association, the Heinz Müller Foundation, a restaurant, and a tourist information facility. The Literature and Art Workshop connected with the Picture Book Museum provides extracurricular programs for regional primary schools through the KennenLernenUmwelt project. Burg Wissem is protected as an architectural heritage monument.
Remains
Burg Wissem is a late-medieval lowland castle, meaning a fortified residence built on relatively level ground. Its long rectangular complex remains open on the western side, while two diagonally corresponding corner towers complete the arrangement. Former water defenses survive in part, preserving evidence of the castle’s earlier moated character.
Castle Buildings
Manor House
The southern side of the complex is occupied by the manor house, built after 1840. It is a two-story Neoclassical rendered building. Its masonry is covered by a protective and decorative plaster coating, while its architectural forms and proportions adapt classical Greek and Roman models.
Eastern Range and Remise
A long rubble-stone range occupies the eastern side of the castle. Dating from about 1550, it is built from irregularly shaped or roughly broken stones. Its Remise, the former outer-bailey building, survives as part of the complex and is used for regular exhibitions and concerts.
Gate Building and Hausstein Portal
The gabled Hausstein portal, dated 1741, survived and was incorporated into a newly constructed gate building. The portal therefore remains part of a later entrance structure while retaining its eighteenth-century fabric.
Northern and Western Ranges
Brick ranges from the eighteenth century formerly extended along the northern and western sides. War damage led to their replacement by new buildings in 1962. The western wing was later remodeled and partly rebuilt between 2010 and 2012.
Park and Cultural Landscape
Portal to the Wahner Heide
The remodeled western wing now houses the Portal to the Wahner Heide. Its exhibition, Nature Tells Stories, presents the nearby nature reserve through displays, specialist lectures, and an information desk. The Wahner Heide is a nature-reserve landscape near Troisdorf whose natural and historical character is explained through the portal.
Sensory-Experience Field
The park contains the fourteen-station sensory-experience field established in 2002. Inspired by ideas associated with Hugo Kükelhaus, the installation is intended to engage and sharpen human senses within the grounds of the castle.
