Located on the southern shore of the Pfaffenteich, the highly prestigious Commandant's House served as the former residence and headquarters of the commander of the Grenadier Guard Battalion. It stands out with its elegant yet distinctly understated design. Even before the relocation of the residence from Ludwigslust to Schwerin, Grand Duke Paul Friedrich prioritized the relocation and modernization of the Mecklenburg military.
Joining the Ludwigslust Grenadier Guard Battalion at the age of ten, Paul Friedrich was appointed Mecklenburg-Schwerin Major General at just 22 years old. Serving as its commander since 1830, he continued his focus on comprehensive military reform upon assuming the reign as Grand Duke in 1837. Through investments in training, equipment, and outfitting, the Mecklenburg units underwent modernization. To facilitate the city's expansion, its outskirts, including the Ostorfer Berg, Werderstraße, and Reifferbahn, presented the best opportunities. As the first construction project of this reform and modernization effort, the Commandant's House was built from 1836 to 1837 by Georg Adolph Demmler. Today, a retail space occupies the ground floor, while the upper floors serve as residential and commercial areas.
About the style
The Commandant's House was constructed as a service and residential building for the commander of the Mecklenburg Brigade, Major General Hartwig von Elderhorst, in the form of a plastered half-timbered structure. Georg Adolph Demmler was commissioned by Grand Duke Paul Friedrich for the construction. The main facade, facing north, consists of nine bays. The ground floor was originally intended as a retail space during construction, a function that continues to this day. The round-arched openings were reinstated during the house's restoration.
The entrances and windows of the basement level feature round arches in the facades of the half-timbered structure. Demmler designed the construction according to the principles of classical composition. The window heights of the principal floor and attic zone are proportionally shortened upwards per floor. The ornamental gables with stuccoed helmets in the principal floor, which are still preserved today, allude to the historical function of the official residence as the Commandant's House. In 1883, the complex passed into private hands through an exchange. The windows of the upper floor are rectangular with straight window canopies. They are set with profiled sill bands on a circumferential belt course. Above, two helmets refer to the master of the house, Major General Elderhorst. The windows on the second upper floor are lower and without window canopies. A corbelled cornice completes the facade.
The overhang of the flat roof was removed by the end of the 19th century and replaced with a balustrade.
