The Deutschhaus in Mainz, view from the city

The Deutschhaus or Deutschordenskommende (German for "Commandry of the Teutonic Knights") is the seat of the Rhineland-Palatinate Landtag in Mainz, Germany. Commandry (British English), or commandery (American English), was the smallest division of the European landed estate or manor under the control of a commendator, or commander, of an order of knights. ... The Teutonic Knights or Teutonic Order (Ordo domus Sanctæ Mariæ Theutonicorum Ierosolimitanorum, Order of the Teutonic House of Mary in Jerusalem) is a German Roman Catholic religious order formed at the end of the 12th century in Acre in Palestine. ... Article 79, Section 1 of the Rhineland-Palatinate constitution provides: The Landtag is the supreme organ of political decision-making, elected by the people. ... Mainz is a city in Germany and the capital of the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate. ...

History

The baroque palace was built from 1729-1740 for Franz Ludwig von Pfalz-Neuburg, Prince-elector and Archbishop of Mainz 1729-1732. Since he was at the same time Hochmeister of the Teutonic Knights, he built the Deutschhaus as his second residence for representative purposes in his duties as Hochmeister in the immediate neighborhood of the Electoral Palace, his other residence. Adoration, by Peter Paul Rubens. ... The quintessential medieval European palace: Palais de la Cité, in Paris, the royal palace of France. ... The prince-electors or electoral princes of the Holy Roman Empire — German: Kurfürst (singular) Kurfürsten (plural) — were the members of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Emperors of Germany. ... Between 780–82 and 1802 the Archbishop of Mainz was an influential ecclesiastic and secular prince in the Holy Roman Empire. ... The Hochmeister (German: ) was the holder of the supreme office, equivalent to a Superior general in a non-military religious order, of the Teutonic Order. ... The Teutonic Knights or Teutonic Order (Ordo domus Sanctæ Mariæ Theutonicorum Ierosolimitanorum, Order of the Teutonic House of Mary in Jerusalem) is a German Roman Catholic religious order formed at the end of the 12th century in Acre in Palestine. ...

The building was constructed by Anselm Franz Freiherr von Ritter zu Groenesteyn in a style influenced by French Baroque architecture. It consists of a main building and two pavilions around a central court. One of the pavillions contained a chapel with frescoes by Christoph Thomas Scheffler. Due to the Hochmeister's death in 1732, the building was never used for its intended function as Hochmeister's residence. A free-standing garden pavilion, Hofgarten in Munich, Bavaria In architecture a pavilion (from French, pavillon) has two main significations. ... A chapel is a private church, usually small and often attached to a larger institution such as a college, a hospital, a palace, or a prison. ... Fresco by Dionisius representing Saint Nicholas. ...

View from the Rhine side

In the times of French occupation leading to the establishment of the Republic of Mainz, it became the seat of the Rhenish-German National Convention. This earliest democratically elected parliament in Germany first met on March 17, 1793 in the Deutschhaus. On the next day, the Convention declared Mainz and all of the territory between Landau and Bingen to be an independent state based on the principles of liberty and egality, and the Convention's president proclaimed the Rhenish-German Free State (Rheinisch-Deutscher Freistaat) from the balcony of the Deutschhaus. After this period had ended with the French capitulation after the Siege of Mainz on July 23, 1793, the building was used by Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen until the territory was ceded to France again in the Treaty of Campo Formio, and the Deutschhaus became the administrative seat of the French département Mont-Tonnerre. It was used as a palace by Napoleon during his all of his 9 stays in Mainz, who planned to double the size of the building and use it as an imperial residence, as Mayence was intended to become one of the bonnes villes de l'Empire, the 36 most important cities of France. The Republic of Mainz was the first democratic state on German territory. ... March 17 is the 76th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (77th in Leap years). ... 1793 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Map of Germany showing Landau Coat of Arms of Landau, 1291 – 1955 Landau or Landau in der Pfalz is an autonomous (Kreisfrei) city surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße (southern wineroute) district of southern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. ... Bingen am Rhein, or Bingen, or Bingen on the Rhine is a modern-day city located at the junction of the rivers Rhine and Nahe in southwestern Germany near the city of Mainz. ... July 23 is the 204th day (205th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 161 days remaining. ... 1793 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... The Treaty of Campo Formio was signed on October 17, 1797 (26 Vendémiaire, Year VI of the French Republic) by Napoleon Bonaparte and Count Ludwig von Cobenzl as representatives of France and Austria. ... Mont-Tonnerre is the name of a département of the First French Empire in present Germany. ... For other uses, see Napoleon (disambiguation). ...

In the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars, the building was used by the Dukes of Hesse-Darmstadt, who obtained the territory of Mainz after the Congress of Vienna. In 1870, the building served as the headquarters of the Prussian army in the early stages of the Franco-Prussian War. The Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt came into existence in 1568, as the portion of George, youngest of the four sons of Landgrave Philipp of Hesse. ... The Congress of Vienna by Jean-Baptiste Isabey, 1819. ... Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Prussia, 1701-1918 Prussia (German: ; Latin: Borussia, Prutenia; Lithuanian: ; Polish: ; Old Prussian: PrÅ«sa) was, most recently, a historic state originating in East Prussia, an area which for centuries had substantial influence on German and European history. ... Combatants Second French Empire North German Confederation allied with south German states (later German Empire) Commanders Napoleon III Helmuth von Moltke Strength 500,000[citation needed] 550,000[citation needed] Casualties 150,000 dead or wounded 284,000 captured 350,000 civilian [citation needed] 100,000 dead or wounded 200...

During World War II, the building was heavily damaged, especially in the air raid of February 27, 1945, which destroyed most of the city. Of the Deutschhaus, only the exterior walls remained. This article is becoming very long. ... February 27 is the 58th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1945 (MCMVL) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ...

The Deutschhaus can be seen at the right of the Neues Zeughaus, the seat of the Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate

Reconstruction started after the Rhineland-Palatinate Landtag decided to move from Koblenz to Mainz on May 28, 1950. It was completed in 1951, and the new building was used for the first time for the constituting session of the newly elected Landtag on May 18, 1951. It has been used as plenary building of the Landtag ever since. As the Deutschhaus has only very limited office space for the members of parliament, a new office building for them was constructed in 1999. A minister-president (Ministerpräsident) is the head of government of a German federal state; the office corresponds to the governorship of a state in the United States. ... Article 79, Section 1 of the Rhineland-Palatinate constitution provides: The Landtag is the supreme organ of political decision-making, elected by the people. ... Koblenz (also Coblenz in pre-1926 German spellings; French Coblence) is a city situated on the left bank of the Rhine at its confluence with the Moselle, where the Deutsches Eck (German Corner) and its monument ( Emperor William I on horseback) are situated. ... Mainz is a city in Germany and the capital of the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate. ... May 28 is the 148th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (149th in leap years). ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... May 18 is the 138th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (139th in leap years). ... 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ...

Sources

This article incorporates text translated from the corresponding German Wikipedia article as of July 6, 2006. The following additional sources were used: July 6 is the 187th day of the year (188th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 178 days remaining. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

• (German) History of the Deutschhaus at the Rhineland-Palatinate Landtag website
• (German) Das Deutschhaus 1945-1951PDF, published by the Rhineland-Palatinate Landtag, includes many pictures of destruction and reconstruction
• (German) Parliamentary office building
• (German) Frankreich und MainzPDF, in: Blätter zum Land 3/2001, published by the Landeszentrale für politische Bildung Rheinland-Pfalz

Coordinates: 50°00′19″N, 8°16′18″E To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...