OLD TOWN HALL MUNICH

Description

Essentials about the Old Town Hall Munich

Munich’s Marienplatz is home to two city halls: the richly decorated New Town Hall and the rather plain Old Town Hall, which closes off the square to the east. Until 1874, when it was moved to the New Town Hall, it was the seat of Munich’s magistrate. Today it is a representative building of the Munich city administration and houses the Toy Museum in its tower.

The history and architecture of the Old Town Hall Munich

The Old Town Hall is a successor building to Munich’s Town Hall, which was first mentioned in a document in 1310 and was located somewhat further west because of the city fortifications, which still ended at Marienplatz at that time. Already at the end of the 14th century, this building received a large hall and the Talburg Gate of the first city wall was converted into the town hall tower.

In 1460 the Old Town Hall fell victim to a lightning strike. Between 1470 and 1480, cathedral master builder Jörg von Halsbach built a late Gothic town hall. The first floor was converted into a central room for festivities and dances. The late Gothic hall, whose barrel vaulting was one of the architectural masterpieces of Munich Gothic, was decorated by Erasmus Grasser with coats of arms of the Bavarian ruling house of Wittelsbach and the famous Morris Dancers, representing a dance that was very popular in the 15th century. However, the dancers in the ballroom today are only copies; the valuable originals are housed in the Munich City Museum.

The Old Town Hall underwent several transformations over the centuries to suit the taste of the times: At the beginning of the 17th century, the facade was baroqueized and the town hall tower was given an onion dome. At the end of the 18th century, the western facade was remodeled in the late Baroque style. And from 1861 to 1864 the Old Town Hall was again regotized in the spirit of historicism. However, the neo-Gothic crenellated gable with its many steps, which was created at that time, did not correspond to the representation of the original Gothic gable. The only part of the town hall that survived the centuries untouched was the festival and dance hall.

After Munich’s city administration moved to the New Town Hall in 1874, the Old City Hall was used primarily for representative occasions. In the 1930s, the first floor of the Old Town Hall, which was kept in the Gothic style, was completely broken through for the current passage from Marienplatz to Tal.

During World War II, the Old Town Hall was badly hit by bombs. Due to the danger of collapse, the town hall tower had to be blown up in 1944. The reconstruction of the Old Town Hall continued until the 1970s. The architects based the facade design on the Gothic original from the 15th century. The windows were raised and neo-Gothic gable elements were inserted. The statues of Ludwig the Bavarian on the west facade and Henry the Lion on the east facade were also preserved. The town hall tower was also reconstructed according to plans of the Gothic original.

The Old Town Hall Munich today

The Festival and Dance Hall of the Old Town Hall is today the representative venue of the City Council and the Lord Mayor of the City of Munich. However, those who wish can also rent the hall for private purposes. The tower of the Old Town Hall today houses the Toy Museum, where you can see old tin toys, model trains, stuffed animals and dolls.