The Grand Ducal Residences – Newly Discovered | Marc Schoentgen & Pierre Even

The Palace in Luxembourg and the Berg & Fischbach Castles

The 450-year-old reliefs of the Renaissance facade of the Grand Ducal Palace and the transformations of the 1890s rarely allow to see the details in the overall view. This also applies to the less accessible facades and parks of the Berg and Fischbach castles. n the observation of all three residences, photographer Marc Schoentgen spent many weeks capturing the countless special features and individual aspects of the facades in photographs and organising them. The observations made in the process contribute to new perspectives on the Grand Ducal residences. The texts by Pierre Even on their history and their illumination in terms of art history summarise previous conclusions and correct and supplement them. The building history of Berg Castle 1907-1911 is published here for the first time on the basis of newly discovered sources.

Marc Schoentgen was born in Luxembourg in 1969. As a police officer he is head of the protection department of the three Grand Ducal Residences. He has become known as a photographer with numerous projects, including photo exhibitions such as “Schengen – En europäescht Wënzerduerf a seng Awunner” (2010), “Schengen – Vins et Vues” (2011) among others in Berlin and Brussels, “Fashion Moments” (2013) in Luxembourg-City at the Place Guillaume II, “Promenade photographique” (2014) in Mondorf-les-Bains, as well as being the editor of a “Gëlle Fra” trilogy (2011). He was the initiator of the international travelling exhibition “The Luxembourg-Nassau Dynasty 1890-2015”, which was ceremonially opened in Schengen in 2016 by HRH the Hereditary Grand Duke and the Hereditary Grand Duchess; the exhibition was shown in 25 Luxembourg municipalities, in the Grand Ducal Palace, at Weilburg Castle (D) and in the USA in the State of Wisconsin. Most recently, he created the open-air photo exhibition “E Bléck op Schlass Biertreng” in Schieren (2021). The photographer Marc Schoentgen’s special eye for detail is impressive. It does not matter where exactly the pictures were taken. What counts is the statement. And in this respect he demonstrates an extraordinary flair. So far, Marc Schoentgen’s works have been published: “Schengen – En europäescht Wënzerduerf ” (2010), the illustrated book “Vun der Rief zum Wäin” (2011), the “Lëtzebuerger Wochekalenner” (2012), the book “Die Dynastie Luxemburg-Nassau 1890-2015”, coauthored with Pierre Even (2015), which was awarded the “Luxembourg Book Prize” in 2016, and the illustrated book “Schlass Biertreng – Eng eemoleg Lëtzebuerger Geschicht”, text by Mil Goerens (2021). Marc Schoentgen was awarded in 2016 the title of “Citoyen remarquable” by his home municipality of Weiler-la-Tour and he was appointed “Chevalier de l’Ordre de Mérite civil et militaire d’Adolphe de Nassau” by HRH the Grand Duke.

Pierre Even was born in Wiesbaden in 1946. From 1966 to 1973, the Luxembourger, descending from a family from Beaufort, studied law, history and music in Frankfurt a. M., Würzburg and Mainz and passed the Grand State Examination in Law in 1976, qualifying him as a judge. Married since 1976, the lawyer and historian has curated several exhibitions on Nassau and Luxembourg themes and has published numerous works on the history of Luxembourg and Nassau, such as “Herzog Adolph von Nassau und die Luxemburger Thronfolgefrage 1884-1890” (1989), “Adolph, Herzog zu Nassau, Großherzog von Luxemburg” (1992), “Nassau-Luxemburg und Dänemark” (1994), “Dynastie Luxemburg-Nassau. Von den Grafen zu Nassau zu den Großherzögen von Luxemburg. Eine neunhundertjährige Herrschergeschichte in einhundert Biographien.” (Luxembourg: Schortgen 2000), “Das Haus Nassau bis zu den Großherzögen von Luxemburg” and “Das Haus Oranien-Nassau bis zu den Königen der Niederlande” (several editions since 2009), “Die Dynastie Luxemburg-Nassau 1890-2015” together with Marc Schoentgen (2015), “Der Erneuerte Nassauische Erbverein vom 30. Juni 1783. Eine historisch-juristische Analyse” (2018), “Beaufort Castles. Mullerthal Region, Little Switzerland, Luxembourg” (2018), “Italienreise mit Peter von Oldenburg und Therese zu Nassau 1838/39. Das Reisetagebuch des Herzoglich Nassauischen Medizinalrats Dr. Fritz Willett” (2018) and “Marie Adelheid von Luxemburg-Nassau” (2019). He is a corresponding member of the Institut grand-ducal de Luxembourg, Section historique (1984) and a member of the Historical Commission for Nassau (1985). HRH the Grand Duke appointed him member of the “Conseil juridique de la Cour” in 2009, Court Archivist in 2010 and Director of the Grand Ducal House Archives in 2017.