District Margarethenhoehe
The beautiful and in its architecture unique district of Margarethenhoehe is located near the Grugapark and thus very close to the Hotel An der Gruga. A visit to Margarethenhöhe should be on the agenda of every visitor to Essen. It is a monument of European rank. Margarethenhöhe is named by Essen’s city council out of gratitude to its founder Margarethe Krupp (1854 – 1931), the wife of the famous industrialist and entrepreneur Friedrich Alfred Krupp (1854 – 1902), and was already considered a prime example of a modern settlement when it was built between 1909 and 1938. She propagated a life in the countryside, i.e. settlements with gardens for self-sufficiency, parks and small industry. The single-family house with garden became the ideal form of living.
A short tour over the Margarethenhöhe is definitely worthwhile and offers an insight into the special features and the extraordinary charm of the settlement. The pure distance is about 2.2 km and can be covered in under an hour. You can also use our free bicycles to explore the beautiful garden city, which is only 10 minutes away from the hotel. It is worth it!
Margarethe Krupp started the project of a new settlement in 1906 on the occasion of the wedding of her daughter Bertha. The aim was to create attractive housing conditions, not only for employees and staff of the Krupp Group: a home with a view of the sun and a garden – in the middle of the city in the heart of the Ruhr area. Construction began in 1909. By 1938 the settlement had been built in 29 construction phases under the leadership of architect Georg Metzendorf. Due to its unity, which was achieved not only structurally but also by its location on a terrain plateau, and its location in front of the city center of Essen, the settlement is considered one of the first German garden cities. The architecture of the initially free-standing gabled houses and later into units
is very similar, but very diversified. All of them already contained baths and stoves after they were built, which was a special progress for that time. The main entrance to the settlement is a large gate.
The center of the settlement is the rectangular, small market place with the consumption and the inn at the south and north end. Striking, as already mentioned, are very flowery street names that describe an ideal home: “Schöngelegen”, “Daheim”, “Stiller Weg”, “Heimgarten”, “Trautes Heim”, “Sonnenblick” or “Im Stillen Winkel” are examples of this. Margarethenhöhe has been a listed building since 1987 and can be visited freely like any normal district. A show house in Stensstraße can be visited as part of a guided tour, although it is possible to visit the houses without
only visible from the outside, but also the typical furnishings. The settlement is especially beautiful to look at when the common vine leaves on many houses take on a red color in autumn.
