Villa Hügel

Built in 1873 by industrial magnate Alfred Krupp, the 269-room mansion (8,100 m2/87,190 sq ft) and the surrounding park of 28 ha (69.2 acres) served as the Krupp family's representative seat. The city's land register solely lists the property, which at times had a staff of up to 640 people, as a single-family home. At its time of construction, the villa featured some technical novelties and peculiarities, such as a central hot air heating system, own water- and gas works and electric internal and external telegraph- and telephone systems (with a central induction alarm for the staff). The mansion's central clock became the reference clock of the whole Krupp enterprise; every clock was to be set with a maximum difference of half a minute. It even got its own train station, Essen Hügel, which is still a regular stop. The Krupp family had to leave the Gründerzeit mansion in 1945, when it was annexed by the allies. Given back in 1952, Villa Hügel was opened for concerts and sporadic yet high profile exhibitions.