Following Goethe’s Footsteps

“It was on the 28^th of August 1749, at the stroke of twelve noon, that I came into the world in Frankfurt on the Main. The constellation was auspicious …”

This is how Johann Wolfgang Goethe described his own birth in his book, “Poetry and Truth”. Despite the fact that Goethe later developed a somewhat ambivalent attitude toward his hometown, Frankfurt nevertheless remains to be the place of his childhood and youth. It was here that Germany’s greatest author and poet spent his formative years, walking through the laneways of the old town, witnessing the preparations for the coronation ceremonies of German kings and emperors, many of whom were later to be found represented on the pages of his literary creations. It was also here that he witnessed the trial of Susanna Margareta Brandt, whose sad fate moved him deeply. Years later, he eternalised the regretful child murderer in his most famous work, “Faust”, in which she took the role of “Gretchen”. Many times, in fact, did his Frankfurt experiences determine characters, places or events in his writings. Today, a walk through Frankfurt helps to bring back memories of Goethe’s time in Frankfurt.

The Goethe-House

Goethe’s birthplace in Frankfurt’s old town (Großer Hirschgraben 23-25) is the premier sightseeing attraction for fans of the Germany’s greatest author and poet. The cornerstone of the present-day Goethe-House was in fact laid by Johann Wolfgang himself when he was a mere five years old. Back then, his father had commissioned two buildings, which he had inherited, to be reconstructed into one grand, bourgeois-style residence. Today, a walk through the Goethe-House provides visitors with a first-hand impression of life during Goethe’s time. Standing in front of the old kitchen stove, one almost senses Goethe’s mother there, preparing a meal. Upstairs, on the first floor, one enters the representative rooms of the house, an assembly of chambers known as “Peking” because of the wallpaper, which features Chinese motifs. Goethe’s father had been forced to leave these rooms to Count Thoranc, commander of the French occupying forces in Frankfurt, who billeted there from 1759 to 1761. While their relationship was somewhat acrimonious, young Johann Wolfgang and the Count quickly became friends. It was from him that the young Goethe learned a smattering of French, with Thoranc also noticing the lad’s talent in drawing, painting and writing. In times of peace, the three rooms making up “Peking” were used for family festivities, including Christmas celebrations and the wedding reception for Goethe’s sister, Cornelia. The portraits of Goethe’s grandparents, Johann Wolfgang and Anna Margareta Textor, which hang in the north-facing room, are of particular interest. The art room on the second floor, meanwhile, is home to a collection of works by local Frankfurt artists favoured by Goethe’s father. Goethe’s mother’s room, on the other hand, features portraits of her husband and herself, which highlight young Goethe’s likeness to his parents:

“From father I get my physique,
Also my earnest nature;
My story-telling bent, glad heart
I have from my dear mother.”

The most important room, historically speaking, is the so-called “poet’s room” on the third floor, where Johann Wolfgang abode during his childhood and youth. Here, he composed  “Götz von Berlichingen” and “The Sorrows of Young Werther”, with which he gained literary fame. One of the walls is adorned, as it was back then, with a silhouette of Charlotte Buff, Goethe’s first true love, eternalised as the character of “Lotte” in “Werther”.

The Goethe Museum

Situated directly next door to the Goethe-House and connected by a passageway, one finds the Goethe Museum, which features a comprehensive collection of paintings and documents from Goethe’s life and times. Aside from numerous manuscripts and portraits of Goethe, the museum also displays works from contemporary artists that are said to have influenced his work.

Address:

Goethe-House and Goethe Museum
Freies Deutsches Hochstift
Frankfurt Goethe Museum
Großer Hirschgraben 23-25
60311 Frankfurt
Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 69 / 13 88 00
Fax: +49 (0) 69 / 13 88 02 22
www.goethehaus-frankfurt.de

Opening hours:

Mondays to Saturdays 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
Sundays and public holidays 10:00 am – 5:30 pm

Admission:

Adults € 7.00
Reduced (handicapped, military service or civilian service) € 3.00 School pupils € 1.50
Students € 3.00
Groups of 20+ persons (per person) € 4.00
Family ticket € 10.00

Gerbermühle

After the Goethe-House, the place that shares the greatest affiliation with Goethe is the “Gerbermühle”, a one-time tanning mill scenically set on the banks of the River Main. Back in the day, the Gerbermühle was the summer residence of the wealthy Frankfurt banker, Johann Jakob von Willemer, whom Goethe stayed with for four weeks in 1815. It was here that the 65-year-old Goethe met and fell in love with the much younger Marianne von Willemer. Their fondness for each other soon developed into a deep love. “Hatem and Suleika”, as the two secretly referred to each other in their love letters, were eternalised by Goethe in his late work, “West-Eastern Divan”. This comprehensive collection of poetry also features poems penned by Marianne, which she had sent to Goethe after the latter had returned to his domicile in Weimar. Today, the Gerbermühle is home to a cosy hotel-restaurant. The establishment’s beautiful garden, shaded by spreading chestnut trees, and the views of the River Main and the Frankfurt skyline attract visitors from near and far during the summer months.

Address:

Restaurant & Landhotel Gerbermühle
Gerbermühlstraße 105
60594 Frankfurt
Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 69 / 689 7779 0
www.gerbermuehle.de

Willemer House

Built in 1810 by order of the Frankfurt banker, Johann Jakob von Willemer, this tower-like summerhouse is scenically situated on the Mühlberg in Sachsenhausen, a neighbourhood that today is home to a number of grand villas. What exactly occurred here on the night of 18^th October 1814, when Johann Wolfgang Goethe and Marianne von Willemer watched the fireworks commemorating the victory over Napoleon at the Battle of the Nations the year prior, is happily left to the imagination. What is certain is that Marianne von Willemer became on this day Goethe’s muse and co-author. It has in the meantime been proven that some fifteen poems published in “West-Eastern Divan” were in fact written by Marianne von Willemer.

Address:

Willemer-Häuschen
Hühnerweg 74
60599 Frankfurt
Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 69 / 21 23 39 52

Opening hours:

Easter Sunday to mid-October
Sundays 11:00 am – 4:00 pm
Admission: Free of charge

The Old Town of Frankfurt-Höchst

As a young man, Goethe and his friends often took one of the merchant boats to the Frankfurt city district of Höchst. Once there, they would visit some of the taverns lining the marketplace, or the Höchst Porcelain Manufactory. Today, the old town of Höchst presents itself much like it did in the days of old. The traditional taverns on the market square, the fortress along the banks of the River Main, the 16^th-century castle, the Romanesque-styled St Justin’s Church from the 08^th century and the Höchst Porcelain Manufactory attract locals as well as out-of-towners to a leisurely stroll through truly historical surrounds.

The Höchst Porcelain Manufactory

Founded in 1747, this small manufactory is one of the oldest porcelain production sites in existence in Europe today. For more than 250 years, the Höchst Porcelain Manufactory has been making primarily neo-classically styled tableware and figurines, still to this day modelled, painted and fired by hand. Like his mother, Johann Wolfgang Goethe was a great fan of the Höchst Porcelain Manufactory and its master modeller, Johann Caspar Melchior, in particular. The two of them became great friends, so much so, in fact, that Goethe was chosen to be godfather to Melchior’s son. To this day, the manufactory produces a Goethe portrait, created by Melchior in honour of his old friend. Guided tours of the manufactory are an absolute must, most of all the visits of the modellers’ and painters’ studios, where tour participants have the unique opportunity of glancing over the shoulders of the artists at work. The permanent exhibition on display in the manufactory’s vaulted cellar presents everything from examples of finest decorative porcelain and tableware from the Rococo period to pieces from the neo-classical era.

Address:

Höchst Porcelain Manufactory
Palleskestraße 32
65929 Frankfurt
Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 69 / 30 09 02 0

Guided tours:

Tuesdays at 10:00 am and 3:00 pm

Admission:

Adults: € 5.00
Youths up to the age of 16: € 2.50
Children up to the age of 10: Free

St Peter’s Cemetery

Situated between Bleichstraße and Stephanstraße in the city centre, one finds St Peter’s Cemetery, in use until 1828. This cemetery is the final resting place of Goethe’s father, Johann Caspar Goethe (1710-1782), and his grandfather. Due to a downsizing of the cemetery grounds, the grave of Goethe’s mother, Catharina Elizabeth Textor (1731-1808), was moved to her family’s gravesite, a columned hall situated on the grounds of the adjacent Liebfrauenschule (“School of Our Lady”).

Goethestraße

Frankfurt’s most exclusive shopping street is, without a doubt, the renowned Goethestraße. Here, fans of luxury brands and designer ware will find famous international fashion labels such Kenzo, Montana, Laura Ashley, van Laack, Jil Sander and many others. Finest leather goods by Louis Vuitton and exquisite jewellery by Cartier und Tiffany are also available here. Even children’s fashion is represented on Goethestraße. In fact, nowhere else in Frankfurt will shoppers find so many different brands from the designer scene than here.

Contact:

Frankfurt Tourist+Congress Board
Elena Holschier-Rupprecht
Kaiserstraße 56
60329 Frankfurt
Phone: +49 (0) 69 / 21 24 30 10
rupprecht@infofrankfurt.de