Haus Friedwart, the Wetzlar home built by Ernst Leitz II, is well known to students of Leica history. It stands on the hill above the old factory in Wetzlar, known as the Kalsmunt, at 4 Lauferdorfer Weg, with a commanding view of the factory, Wetzlar and the hills beyond. I had seen the outside of it many times during my visits to Wetzlar in the past 45 years, but had never been able to see the inside of it. I remember well one visit with my dad back in the mid-80’s, as we walked around the house and he told me of his first time there as a young GI in 1947 to try and get a Leica camera. Needless to say, he came away empty handed on that trip! As part of my “Total Wetzlar Experience” tour, I was determined to make a tour of Haus Friedwart a highlight of the many things my group saw while in Wetzlar. I had arranged for a personal tour of Haus Friedwart and its grounds by the grandson of Ernst Leitz II and son of Elsie, Knut Kühn-Leitz. Elsie returned to live in the house in 1940 after her marriage to Kurt Kühn, and Knut grew up here as a boy.

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Haus Friedwart is in fact the second home Ernst Leitz II built in Wetzlar, constructed in the years 1914 to 1917. The first home built by Ernst Leitz II for his first wife Elsie and their three children (Elsie Leitz, Ernst Leitz III and Ludwig Leitz II) was located just up the hill from the Kalsmunttor at 3 Lauferdorfer Weg. Built in 1904, this was a large, two story house in the then popular Art Nuveau style, and was named Villa “Rosenberg” after the floral style of the window frames, bow windows and ornamental ironwork of the house.

After a few happy years at Villa Rosenberg, Ernst became a widower in 1910 with three small children to care for. He was looking to make a new start, having married his second wife Hedwig, and this became the inspiration for Haus Friedwart, loosely translated into English as “Guardian of Peace”. Jean Emil Schmidt received the commission from Ernst Leitz II for the main architectural and structural elements of the house. Schmidt was responsible for the design and construction of the Leitz factory “Hochhaus” on Ernst Leitz Strasse and for several other buildings at the Leitz Werke, so he was someone whom Leitz already trusted and had a good working relation- ship with. Through his connections to and design work for Ernst Leitz’s sister Ella Bocks, Bruno Paul, a successful painter, graphic artist and architect and Director of the Kunstgewer- bemuseum in Berlin, and she introduced him to her brother. He became well-known for the creation of the “Gelbes Haus” for a Werkbund exhibition in Cologne in 1914, and his artistic style was a precursor to what later became known as the Art Deco movement. Bruno Paul was then at the pinnacle of his artistic career having designed other elegant villas, chic interiors for ocean liners and commercial buildings, and he was commissioned to make certain alterations to the exterior of the house and was responsible for the entire interior design. Bruno Paul was assisted by Emil Orlick, an associate from the Kunstgewerbemuseum, and was responsible for one of the unique features of the house, the design of the intricate carvings on the stair banisters in the front hall of the house.

The grounds around the house are quite steep, with Knut leading us around the front and back of the house, pointing out interesting details along the way. Despite being in his 80’s, Knut had no problem with all the walking up and down hill. We entered the house through the front door and on into the front hall with staircase. Here there were portraits of Ernst Leitz I and II, along with busts over the fireplace of Ernst Leitz I, II and III. Here stood a grand piano with the Guest Book for us to sign. We were quite honored to do so, and glancing through it is like a Who’s Who of the twentieth century. Albert Schweitzer, Theodor Heuss, Elly Ney, Konrad Adenauer, Walter Gieseking, Patrice Lumumba, Emporer Akihito, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Ernst Haas, Elliott Erwitt, Alfred Eisenstaedt and many others had signed the Guest Book before us. Knut pointed out the intricate carving and words over the staircase, and also to the large sculpture of Jesus on the Cross on the back wall. This sculpture is one of only four made by Ernst Barlach, and was declared “degenerate art” by the Nazi regime. To save it from being melted down, it was hidden during the war years under the staircase! Going up the stairs to the family living quarters, one is struck by the thought of all of the Leitz family going up and down these same stairs all those years ago. One room that was quite impressive was the Red Vestibule, with its striking display of red furniture, drapery and fixtures. Here hangs a portrait of a young Knut in lederhosen. Next came the dove gray Music Room with a concert grand piano, one of several in the house played by famous guest musicians over the years. Haus Friedwart was not only the home of the Leitz family, but also a center for the arts and artists who visited Wetzlar from around the world. Through one room after another, Knut pointed out the unique design features and stories, with family pictures placed all around with many being of Knut, his mother, uncles and Grandfather. We passed through the sitting rooms and grand dining room, and one could only imagine the dinner guests in attendance in so grand and cultured a place. Heads of state, famous composers and musicians, humanitarians and yes, famous photographers over the years have been here to visit before us.

Walking downhill again from Haus Friedwart, we returned to the old Administration Building at the Kalsmunttor next to the old factory. I had visited this spot many times as well, as I’m sure many others have, to see the plaque on the wall commemorating the decision made in 1924 by Ernst Leitz II to produce the Leica after a contentious morning-long board meeting with the directors of the Leitz firm. In attendance were Ernst Leitz II, Oskar Barnack, Max Berek, Dr. Henri Dumur, Michael Becker, and the foremen of the mechanical and optical departments, August Bauer and Rudolf Zak. Becker was on hand to advise as to the potential success of the new camera in foreign markets. There were strong arguments against making the Leica, such as Leitz was a producer of capital goods such as microscopes, not consumer goods such as cameras. The Leica was seen as a toy, as everyone knew you could not make good pictures from such a tiny negative. But Ernst Leitz was determined to diversify the Leitz Company at a time of great economic uncertainty to help his workers and the company survive. The period of hyper-inflation and subsequent economic depression had hit Germany hard. Leitz felt strongly that the consumer market was ready for such an innovative new camera. After many hours of argument, there was no consensus among the board members. Finally, looking at his watch, Leitz said, “So, it is now twelve-thirty pm. We conclude this meeting. I here- by decide it will be risked.” The board room is now the office of the wife of the current building owner. It is hard to imagine today what it was like in 1924. We were also shown the office of Ernst Leitz II, which is now a records storage room! We learned that not only was this building used by the Leitz Company for its offices, but it was also the home of Ernst Leitz I, and that his son had grown up here! Knut told us a funny story about the office and one of its famous occupants. This was about Max Berek and his dog Rex, who inspired the name for Berek’s master- piece, the Summarex lens. Frau Berek would send the dog in to the office to fetch his master so she didn’t have to climb the stairs every day, and then they would all go home for lunch. This is only one of the many stories Knut told us during our visit.

Many thanks to Knut Kuhn-Leitz for making this tour of Haus Friedwart possible. It has been a life-long dream of mine to get to see the inside of the house after so many visits in years past. I have visited many homes of the “rich and famous” over the years, from Mount Vernon, Paul Revere’s home in Boston, the Vanderbilts summer home The Breakers in Newport and George Eastman’s house in Rochester. Yet, none of them had the impact of Haus Friedwart, with its sense of Leica history and the beautiful concept and execution of Bruno Paul’s vision of what a grand house should be. Dad, you would have loved it!

For more information on Bill's Wetzlar tours, please visit www.derleicamantours.com.

Main stairway for the old Admin buiding.

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