In 1842, the Marstall (Royal Stables) was completed. Six years later, the horse infirmary was built opposite it, based on the designs of the architect Georg Adolph Demmler. The functional buildings were gradually expanded. Architect Hermann Willebrand, commissioned by the Grand Duke, provided the plans for a larger and more modern linen room than before. Willebrand also created the court laundry.
The two-story laundry was constructed in 1895. Today, the premises house a restaurant. Its name, "Dampfwäscherei" (Steam Laundry), harks back to earlier times. The building's construction and architectural style are representative of the typical industrial architecture of the late 19th century. The varied façade effect is primarily achieved through the alternating layers of yellow and red bricks. The linen and bedding room had already been put into operation in 1878. For this purpose, Hermann Willebrand had expanded and modernized the previous building to the east. He unified both parts of the building with a simple, classical plaster façade.
The façades of the horse clinic opposite are designed in a reduced, late-classical style. The ground floor of the adjacent building previously housed apartments for the staff of the Grand Ducal administration, as well as for veterinarians and caretakers.
About the style
The horse infirmary, with its simply designed, late-classical façade, is architecturally connected to the Marstall building. The Grand Ducal linen and bedding room, a ten-bay building complex, features plastered façades under a low hipped roof. Facing Großer Moor street, the laundry building appears as a five-bay structure. Its central risalit serves as a continuous building body, allowing workflows as in a factory hall. The view from Werderstraße reinforces the hall-like character. This overall impression is further enhanced by the staggered roof heights.
