ABSTRACT
During a large part of the nineteenth century, Baden-Baden was ‘the summer UHVLGHQFHRI DOO WKHQRELOLW\DQG IDVKLRQRI(XURSH¶ $QRQS7KH *HUPDQ VSD WRZQ VLWXDWHG DERXW NLORPHWUHV IURP WKH)UHQFKERUGHU LQ WKH IRUPHU*UDQG'XFK\RI%DGHQKDGRQFHEHHQWKHVHDWRIWKH0DUJUDYHVRI%DGHQ XQWLO LWZDV DOPRVW FRPSOHWHO\ GHVWUR\HG E\ )UHQFK IRUFHV LQ GXULQJ WKH course of the Nine Years’ War and fell into oblivion for the subsequent hundred \HDUV ,WZDVRQO\DW WKH WLPHRI WKH6HFRQG&RQJUHVVRI5DVWDWW WKDW LW UHJDLQHG VRPH LI RQO\ PRGHUDWH LQWHUQDWLRQDO SRSXODULW\ 6WHLQKDXVHU S+RZHYHUE\WKHPLGQLQHWHHQWKFHQWXU\DYHU\GL൵HUHQWSLFWXUHFRPHV LQWRYLHZ%DGHQ%DGHQKDGQRZEHFRPHWKHµ4XHHQRI:DWHULQJ3ODFHV¶$QRQ SRUDVWKH)UHQFKZULWHU(XJqQH*XLQRWSXWLWLQKLVWKHQIDPRXVZRUN A Summer at Baden-Baden±¿UVWSXEOLVKHG LQ± WKHµVXPPHUFDSLWDO¶RI (XURSH*XLQRWS7KLVFDUHHUKDGLWVEHJLQQLQJLQWKHVDQGWKHUH followed a long-running boom after 1840 that culminated in the 1860s and came WRDVXGGHQHQGZLWKWKH)UDQFR3UXVVLDQ:DULQ
The nineteenth century, particularly the period from 1840 to 1870, was the *ROGHQ$JHRI(XURSHDQZDWHULQJSODFHV*HUERGS Unlike in the previous century, and notably as a result of the increased mobility that came along with the advent of the railway, recreational travel became less and less a privilege of the nobility. Smaller and greater spa towns mushroomed all over Europe, including in Britain, so that their number exceeded six hundred by the early 1880s )OHFKVLJ+RZHYHURQO\IHZUHDFKHGWKHUDQNRIZKDWLVFDOOHGDWeltbad in German and a Hydropole in French: that is, a fashionable spa town of international reputation with an annual attendance of tens of thousands of visitors *HUERGS$PRQJWKHVHZHUHVHYHUDO:HVW*HUPDQWRZQVVXFKDV :LHVEDGHQDQG(PVWKH:HVW%RKHPLDQVSDWULDQJOHRI)UDQ]HQVEDG.DUOVEDG DQG 0DULHQEDG 9LFK\ DQG $L[ LQ )UDQFH DQG ± DOUHDG\ ZHOO NQRZQ LQ WKH eighteenth century – Spa in Belgium and Bath in England. In the summer of 1840, %DGHQ%DGHQIRUWKH¿UVWWLPHR൶FLDOO\VXUSDVVHGYLVLWRUVDQGIURPWKHQ RQH[SHULHQFHGDQXQSDUDOOHOOHGERRPZLWKDUHJXODUDWWHQGDQFHRIRYHU IURP WKH ODWH V ZKHUHDV LWV FRPSHWLWRUV OHYHOOHG R൵ EHWZHHQ DQG )UHFK+HUUPDQQ.OHPPDQG0D\HU7KHPRVWO\ORFDODQG regional visitors of earlier times, who had come for medical reasons, were soon
marginalized by an international public composed of members of the European DULVWRFUDF\ DQG WKH HPHUJHQW ¿QDQFLDO LQGXVWULDO DQG FRPPHUFLDO ERXUJHRLVLH supplemented by celebrities from the world of theatre, music and literature. Between 1840 and 1870 Baden-Baden, which in spite of the growing middle-class attendance at watering places in general remained a rendezvous of the elite, was thus much less of a therapeutic place than a pleasure ground for a privileged OHLVXUHFODVV:LWKXSWRSHUFHQWRIDOOYLVLWRUVLWDOVRUHJLVWHUHGWKHKLJKHVW UDWHRIIRUHLJQJXHVWVZKRFDPHIURPDOORYHU(XURSHDQGIURPWKHVIURP RWKHUFRQWLQHQWVDVZHOO+HUUPDQQ.OHPPDQG0D\HUS+RZHYHU for more than three decades it was the French who represented a major share of all visitors, surpassed only by guests from the Grand Duchy and other German states, DQGWKHLULQÀXHQFHZDVWKXVXELTXLWRXVLQ%DGHQ%DGHQ)UHQFKZDVWKHFRPPRQ tongue of social intercourse that not only ‘preside[d] over the cordial understanding RIWKHOHDGLQJPLQGVRI(XURSH¶*XLQRWSS±EXWDOVRVHUYHGDV the main language of commerce and service: ‘Every waiter, coachman, artisan DQGEHJJDUER\VPDWWHUV)UHQFK¶ZKLQHGWKH*HUPDQPLOLWDU\ZULWHU-XOLXVYRQ :LFNHGH S 0RUHRYHU WKH SXEOLF VSDFH RI %DGHQ%DGHQ ZDV LQFUHDVLQJO\)UHQFKL¿HGDOUHDG\E\WKHVPRVWRIWKHKRWHOVKDGFRPELQHG German and French names, and the same applied to restaurants and stores $OOJHPHLQH =HLWXQJ :LFNHGH S +HQFH *HUPDQ contemporaries frequently complained that they felt as if they were in a French FRORQ\$QGUHHS:DFKHQKXVHQ:LFNHGHSZKHUHDV 3DULVLDQ FRQWHPSRUDULHV WHQGHG WR WDNH LW IRU µRQH RI RXU faubourgs¶ 3LOJULP S 7KLVWHQGHQF\WRZDUG)UHQFKL¿FDWLRQZDVIRVWHUHGE\WKHUDSLGH[SDQVLRQRI
the railway network after the foundation of the Grand Duchy of Baden State 5DLOZD\LQDQGWKH)UHQFK&RPSDJQLHGHV&KHPLQVGH)HUGHO¶(VWLQ The relevant section of the Rhine Valley line was completed in 1844, followed by WKHEUDQFKOLQH%DGHQ%DGHQ2RVLQDQGWKHCF de l’Est accomplished their PDLQWDVNWKHHVWDEOLVKPHQWRIWKH3DULV6WUDVERXUJOLQHLQ:KHQ)UDQFH and the Grand Duchy signed an interstate agreement for the construction of the 5KLQH%ULGJHDW.HKO¿YH\HDUVODWHUWKHUDLOZD\EHFDPHDWUDQVQDWLRQDOPDWWHU UHVXOWLQJ LQGHERUGHULQJH൵HFWV7KH¿UVWSHUPDQHQW UDLOZD\EULGJHDFURVV WKH 8SSHU5KLQHRSHQHGLQ$SULODQGZDVSDUWLFXODUO\FHOHEUDWHGE\WKH3DULVLDQ habitués of the spa resort, who could now ‘put on an evening dress in the morning LQ 3DULV DQG GDQFH LQ%DGHQ%DGHQ E\ QLJKW¶1 0pU\ S$ IXUWKHU reason for the high rate of French visitors, as well as for Baden-Baden’s upswing LQJHQHUDOZDVWKHJDPEOLQJKDOOVLQWKH&RQYHUVDWLRQ+RXVH3XEOLFJDPEOLQJ was prohibited throughout Europe with the exception of several German spa towns, giving these a crucial competitive edge. Baden-Baden not only had a casino, but also had its leaseholders and brilliant entrepreneurs, the BenazetDupressoir family, who acted more as cultural patrons of the town than as mere GLUHFWRUVRI WKHJUHHQ WDEOHV -DFTXHV%HQD]HWKDGEHHQ WKHSULQFLSDO WHQDQWRI VHYHUDOIDPRXV3DULVLDQJDPLQJKRXVHVIRUDOPRVWWZHQW\\HDUVZKHQWKH)UHQFK
JDPEOLQJSURKLELWLRQFDPHLQWRH൵HFWLQ2QH\HDUODWHUKHFDPHWR%DGHQ Baden, evidently with the intention of turning the small Black Forest spa resort LQWRDOLWWOH3DULV5RFKHIRUWS+HSURFHHGHGYHU\UDSLGO\DQGH൵HFWLYHO\ in this matter and his successors, son Edouard Benazet and grandson Emile Dupressoir, followed in his footsteps. They hired distinguished French architects DQGGHFRUDWRUVIRUQHZEXLOGLQJVDQGPRGL¿FDWLRQVHQJDJHGWKHFRPSDQLHVRIWKH JUHDW 3DULVLDQ WKHDWUHVZRQ RYHU WKH -RFNH\&OXE WR KRVW WKH ,൵H]KHLP KRUVH races, and did all of this in such a way that it attracted the glamorous society of Tout-Paris. ‘The brief summer span of life of Baden depended entirely on the 3DULVLDQV¶GHFODUHGDQ(QJOLVKREVHUYHULQDUHWURVSHFWLYHZULWWHQLQWKUHH \HDUVDIWHUWKH)UDQFR3UXVVLDQ:DUWKDWWXUQHGRXWWREHDZDWHUVKHGLQWKHWRZQ¶V KLVWRU\ $QRQ S 7KH FDVH RI %DGHQ%DGHQ WKXV LQYROYHV YDULRXV interacting phenomena that can be grouped under the designation of de-bordering, from transnational politico-economic cooperation fostering growing geographical mobility and hence cross-border movement of persons and goods to processes of cultural exchange and knowledge transfer. These tendencies and developments found their focal point not in the whole of a border region, but in a single town located in such a region. In contrast, and as will be discussed below, the LPSOLFDWLRQVRIWKHZDURQ%DGHQ%DGHQFDQEHVHHQDVV\PSWRPVDQGH൵HFWVRI re-bordering.
