Plön Castle

Since January 2002 it has belonged to the Fielmann Akademie Schloss Plön and, after extensive conversion, serves as a training and qualification centre for a branch of optometry.

The earliest Wendish defensive fortification called Plune dates to the 10th century and was located on the island of Olsborg in Lake Plön.

The rebuilding of the castle was carried out under Count Adolphus II of Holstein, and it served as a base during the colonization of the once-Slavic region.

From 1290 to 1390 the hill castle was the seat of the Schauenburg line of Holstein-Plön and, after their extinction, was transferred to the Duke of Schleswig, Gerhard VI.

On the occasion of his marriage to the Gottorf princess, Dorothea Augusta, the new ruler decided to build a palace fit for himself and his family.

[8] After Duke Joachim Ernest, the castle went to his son, Hans Adolf, who, however, as a general in the service of the Emperor, rarely stayed in Plön and the duchy was largely represented by his wife and mother.

After he died in debt in 1722 without male heirs, the castle stood empty for seven years and some of the furniture was passed to his creditors.

The young man, who was unable to discharge his duties as a duke, was given the castle by his guardian, assigned to the Danish king Christian VII and was allowed to retain a large household.

[11] Plön Castle was rebuilt inside as barracks and subsequently served the Prussian Province of Schleswig-Holstein as a military school for cadets.

[11] The sons of the German Emperor, William II, were educated in Plön from the end of the 19th century and, for that purpose, the summer residence in the garden was extended to form the so-called Princes' House.

[1] After World War I, military schools were banned by the Treaty of Versailles and the castle was used in the 1920s as a state educational institution (Staatliche Bildungsanstalt).

Afterwards British occupation troops entered Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg as part of VIII Corps under General Evelyn Barker, and established their headquarters in the castle.

Advice in 1986/1988 showed that the site needed major investment and would only be saved from ruin by spending tens of millions of deutschmarks.

Because this offer included an elaborate argument of the various benefits to the public, Schleswig-Holstein's state parliament approved it in 2002[18] Consequently, the Fielmann Akademie foundation purchased the castle for 3.6 million Euro.

Günther Fielmann summarised the state of the monument at that time: Over four years the castle has been reconstructed in accordance with preservation and heritage orders.

Some parts, however, serve as a museum: the Duke's historical Rococo rooms in the east wing of the castle have been intricately restored and can be viewed during daily tours.

[25] In 2008 and 2009 the castle hosted the Global Economic Symposium with participants like George Akerlof, Richard Evans and Joseph Stiglitz.