Neues Landhaus

The Neues Landhaus, or the New Country House, is a prominent building in Innsbruck, the capital of the state of Tyrol in Austria. It serves as the headquarters for several administrative institutions of the state, such as the governor’s office, the state parliament, and the state court. However, the building also has a dark and troubled past, as it was constructed during the National Socialist period and reflects the ideology and aesthetics of the Nazi regime.

The Neues Landhaus is a building that reflects the complex and contradictory history of Tyrol and Austria in the 20th and 21st centuries. It is a building that was built by the Nazis, but also a building that was reclaimed by the Tyroleans. It is a building that represents the state, but also a building that challenges the state. It is a building that is surrounded by monuments, but also a building that needs a monument. It is a building that is a source of pride, but also a source of shame. It is a building that is a part of the city, but also a building that stands apart from the city. It is a building that is in need of a dialogue, but also a building that sparks a conflict. The Neues Landhaus is a building that is not easy to ignore, but also not easy to understand.

The Gauhaus: A Symbol of Nazi Power

The Neues Landhaus was originally known as the Gauhaus, or the District House, as it was built to serve as the administrative headquarters for the newly established Reichsgau Tirol-Vorarlberg. The Reichsgau was a territorial unit created by the Nazi regime in 1938, after the annexation of Austria, to replace the former states of Tyrol and Vorarlberg. The Gauhaus was constructed in 1938/39, following the design of the architects Walter and Ewald Guth, who were members of the Nazi party and had close ties to Albert Speer, Hitler’s chief architect.

The neoclassical building’s façade was striking, as it incorporated elements from Speer’s New Reich Chancellery in Berlin, such as the monumental columns, the triangular pediment, and the large windows. The façade also featured the Nazi symbols of the swastika and the eagle, as well as the Tyrolean and Vorarlberg coats of arms, which represent the district. The coats of arms are still visible above the side entrance today. The building was intended to convey a sense of power, authority, and prestige, as well as to demonstrate the integration of the region into the Nazi state.

The Gauhaus was also part of a larger plan to transform Innsbruck into a model Gau capital, following the example of other cities such as Linz, Munich, and Nuremberg. The plan involved the creation of a Gauforum, or a district forum, which would consist of a complex of buildings and public spaces that would serve as the political, cultural, and social center of the Gau. The Gauforum would include a large square, a parade ground, a congress hall, a theater, a museum, and a hotel. However, the plan was never fully realized, as the construction was interrupted by the outbreak of World War II in 1939. Only the Gauhaus and a few other buildings were completed by the end of the war.

The Neues Landhaus: A Legacy of the Post-War Period

After the war, the Gauhaus was renamed as the Neues Landhaus, or the New Country House, to distinguish it from the Old Country House, which was a baroque building dating back to the 18th century. The Old Country House had served as the seat of the Tyrolean government until 1938, when it proved to be too small to accommodate the administrative apparatus of the Nazi regime. As a result, the Gauhaus was constructed as an extension of the Old Country House, and the two buildings were connected by a corridor.

In 1945/46, the Nazi national emblems were removed from the Neues Landhaus, as part of the denazification process. However, in 1960, a stone Zenoberg eagle, designed by the sculptor Lois Egg, was attached to the eastern edge of the south façade. The Zenoberg eagle is a heraldic symbol of Tyrol, which dates back to the 13th century. It was meant to replace the Nazi eagle and to emphasize the Tyrolean identity and autonomy of the region.

Today, the Neues Landhaus, along with a newly constructed building called “Landhaus 2,” which was completed in 2004, serves as the home for several state institutions. Across from the recently constructed country house stands the liberation monument, which was built between 1946 and 1948. The monument consists of a bronze statue of a woman holding a torch, symbolizing freedom, and a stone pedestal with the inscription “Tirol den Freiheitskämpfern 1938-1945” (Tyrol to the freedom fighters 1938-1945). Nearby, there is also the pogrom monument, which was erected in 1997 to honor the victims of the November pogroms of 1938, when the Nazis destroyed the synagogues and Jewish businesses in Innsbruck and other cities.

The Landhausplatz: A Site of Transformation and Controversy

Following an architectural competition in 2008, the square in front of the country house, known as the Landhausplatz, underwent a transformation. Cars were removed and the area was redesigned to create a more pedestrian-friendly and attractive public space. The ARGE LAAC/Stiefel Kramer/Grüner architects’ association has developed plans for an urban floor sculpture that spans the entire square. The sculpture consists of a series of concrete slabs that form a dynamic pattern of slopes, curves, and steps. The sculpture is intended to invite people to interact, play, and relax on the square, as well as to create a contrast to the rigid and austere architecture of the Neues Landhaus.

However, the transformation of the Landhausplatz has also sparked controversy and criticism in recent years. In 2019, the building’s troubled history became a public topic of discussion, as a result of a documentary film by the filmmaker Andreas Pichler, titled “Das Neue Landhaus” (The New Country House). The film exposed the Nazi origins of the building and questioned its role and meaning in the present. As a response, an explanation board was installed on the square, which aimed to provide historical information and context about the building. However, the board’s awkward and contradictory wording has faced criticism, as it seemed to downplay or justify the Nazi past of the building. For example, the board stated that the building was “built in the style of the time” and that it was “not a Nazi building, but a building from the Nazi era.”

The artistic interventions competition in 2022, which followed after, also faced protests due to unclear decision-making. The competition invited artists to propose artworks that would address the history and memory of the Neues Landhaus and the Landhausplatz. However, the jury’s selection of the winning proposal, which consisted of a neon sign with the word “Gauhaus” on the façade of the building, was met with resistance and outrage by some politicians, historians, and citizens. They argued that the proposal was insensitive, provocative, and disrespectful to the victims of the Nazi regime. They also claimed that the proposal was not transparently communicated and that it lacked public participation and consultation. The Tyrolean state government halted the art project in February 2023, and announced that it would launch a new process to find a more suitable and consensual solution.

Innsbruck, Austria