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Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Baden, Germany (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Baden, Germany (1890s)

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The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is named after the margraves’ residence, Hohenbaden Castle in Baden-Baden. Hermann II of Baden first claimed the title of Margrave of Baden in 1112. A united Margraviate of Baden existed from this time until 1535, when it was split into the two Margraviates of Baden-Durlach and Baden-Baden. Following a…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Upper Bavaria, Germany (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Upper Bavaria, Germany (1890s)

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After the founding of the Kingdom of Bavaria the state was totally reorganised and, in 1808, divided into 15 administrative districts (Regierungsbezirke (singular Regierungsbezirk)), in Bavaria called (Kreise (singular Kreis)). They were created in the fashion of the French departements, quite even in size and population, and named after their main rivers. In the following years, due to territorial changes…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Alsace Lorraine, Germany (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Alsace Lorraine, Germany (1890s)

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In 1871, the newly created German Empire’s demand for Alsace from France after its victory in the Franco-Prussian War was not simply a punitive measure. The transfer was controversial even among the Germans: The German Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, was initially opposed to it, as he thought (correctly) it would engender permanent French enmity toward Germany. Some German industrialists did…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Nuremberg, Germany (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Nuremberg, Germany (1890s)

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After the Thirty Years’ War, Nuremberg attempted to remain detached from external affairs, but contributions were demanded for the War of the Austrian Succession and the Seven Years’ War and restrictions of imports and exports deprived the city of many markets for its manufactures. The Bavarian elector, Charles Theodore, appropriated part of the land obtained by the city during the…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Lucerne, Switzerland (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Lucerne, Switzerland (1890s)

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It was during the latter part of the 19th century that Lucerne became a popular destination for artists, royalty and others to escape to. The German composer Richard Wagner established a residence at Tribschen in 1866 from which he lived and worked. The city was then boosted by a visit by Queen Victoria to the city in 1868, during which…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Towns in Wales (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Towns in Wales (1890s)

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Prior to the industrial revolution in Wales there were small-scale industries scattered throughout Wales. These ranged from those connected to agriculture, such as milling and the manufacture of woollen textiles, through to mining and quarrying. Agriculture remained the dominant source of wealth. The emerging industrial period saw the development of copper smelting in the Swansea area. With access to local…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Edinburgh, Scotland (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Edinburgh, Scotland (1890s)

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Despite an enduring myth to the contrary, Edinburgh became an industrial centre with its traditional industries of printing, brewing and distilling continuing to grow in the 19th century and joined by new industries such as rubber works, engineering works and others. By 1821, Edinburgh had been overtaken by Glasgow as Scotland’s largest city. The city centre between Princes Street and…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of County Dublin, Ireland (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of County Dublin, Ireland (1890s)

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Despite harsh penal laws and unfavourable trade restrictions imposed upon Ireland, Dublin flourished in the 18th century. The Georgian buildings which still define much of Dublin’s architectural landscape to this day were mostly built over a 50-year period spanning from about 1750 to 1800. Bodies such as the Wide Streets Commission completely reshaped the city, demolishing most of medieval Dublin…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Marienburg (Malbork), Prussia (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Marienburg (Malbork), Prussia (1890s)

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It was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia in the First Partition of Poland in 1772 and became part of the newly established Province of West Prussia the following year. Prussians liquidated the municipal government and replaced it with new Prussian-appointed administration. In the early 19th century, Prussian authorities acknowledged the town’s Polish-speaking community, ensuring that priests could deliver the…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Bath, England (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Bath, England (1890s)

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In the early 18th century, Bath acquired its first purpose-built theatre, the Old Orchard Street Theatre. It was rebuilt as the Theatre Royal, along with the Grand Pump Room attached to the Roman Baths and assembly rooms. Master of ceremonies Beau Nash, who presided over the city’s social life from 1705 until his death in 1761, drew up a code…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Stettin, Germany (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Stettin, Germany (1890s)

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Stettin developed into a major Prussian port and became part of the German Empire in 1871. While most of the province retained its agrarian character, Stettin was industrialised, and its population rose from 27,000 in 1813 to 210,000 in 1900 and 255,500 in 1925. Major industries that flourished in Stettin from 1840 were shipbuilding, chemical and food industries, and machinery…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Hartz, Germany (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Hartz, Germany (1890s)

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As a young man, the famous German poet, Goethe visited the Harz several times and had a number of important lifetime experiences. These included his walks on the Brocken and his visit to the mines in Rammelsberg. Later, his observations of the rocks on the Brocken led to his geological research. His first visit to the Harz awakened in him…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of County Donegal, Ireland (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of County Donegal, Ireland (1890s)

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The modern County Donegal was shired by order of the English Crown in 1585. The English authorities at Dublin Castle formed the new county by amalgamating the old Kingdom of Tír Chonaill with the old Lordship of Inishowen. However, although detachments of the Royal Irish Army were stationed there, the Dublin authorities were unable to establish control over Tír Chonaill…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Wernigerode, Germany (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Wernigerode, Germany (1890s)

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Wernigerode was the capital of the medieval County of Wernigerode and Stolberg-Wernigerode. In 1815, after the Napoleonic Wars, it became part of the Prussian Province of Saxony. The Hasseröder brewery was founded in Wernigerode in 1872. After World War II, Wernigerode was included in the new state Saxony-Anhalt within the Soviet occupation zone (relaunched in October 1949 as the German…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Pomerania, Germany (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Pomerania, Germany (1890s)

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Prussia gained the southern parts of Swedish Pomerania in 1720, invaded and annexed Pomerelia from Poland in 1772 and 1793, and gained the remainder of Swedish Pomerania in 1815, after the Napoleonic Wars. The former Brandenburg-Prussian Pomerania and the former Swedish parts were reorganized into the Prussian Province of Pomerania, while Pomerelia was made part of the Province of West…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Towns in Bavaria, Germany (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Towns in Bavaria, Germany (1890s)

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When Bavaria became part of the newly formed German Empire, this action was considered controversial by Bavarian nationalists who had wanted to retain independence from the rest of Germany, as had Austria. As Bavaria had a heavily Catholic majority population, many people resented being ruled by the mostly Protestant northerners of Prussia. As a direct result of the Bavarian-Prussian feud,…
Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Harz, Germany (1890s)

Vintage: Historic B&W photos of Harz, Germany (1890s)

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Around 1800, large swathes of the Harz were deforested. The less resistant spruce monoculture, that arose as a consequence of the mining industry in the Upper Harz, was largely destroyed by a bark beetle outbreak and a storm of hurricane proportions in November 1800. This largest known bark beetle infestation in the Harz was known as the Große Wurmtrocknis, and…