With the connection of Brühl to the Bonn-Cologne railway line and the temporary presence of the Prussian royal family in the castle, the city experienced an economic and social boom. In this context, the hotelier Peter Granthil had the so-called "Brühler Pavilion" built in the classical style near the former electoral riding school in 1844. With its dance hall, it served as an elegant meeting place for better-off Cologne social circles. |
In 1870 it was expanded into a hotel. After the First World War, the building was named Benediktusheim, as it was with the financial support of Pope Benedictus XV. was used as a children and a rest home. From 1953 there was a retirement home under the direction of the order "The Servants of the Heart of Jesus". Since 2005, after planning and renovation by Cologne architects Thomas van den Valentyn and Seyed Mohammad Oreyzi, the world's first Max Ernst Museum has been housed here. |