Representatives of the Free State of Saxony, the town of Tharandt, and TU Dresden signed the deed to transfer the Grillenburg Castle to TUD

On August 16, 2024, the Minister President of the Free State of Saxony, Michael Kretschmer, the Mayor of the City of Tharandt, Silvio Ziesemer, Prof. Ursula Staudinger, Rector of TUD and Jan Gerken, Chancellor of TUD Dresden University of Technology (TUD), signed the deed of transfer for the Grillenburg Castle including the surrounding ponds to TUD. The signing took place on-site, in the Grillenburg Hunting Castle. Sebastian Gemkow, Saxon State Minister for Science, Culture and Tourism (SMWK), and Prof. Klaus-Dieter Barbknecht, Rector of TU Bergakademie Freiberg (TUBAF), also took part in the signing ceremony. In the coming years, both the federal government and the Free State of Saxony will invest EUR 18 million each, while TUD will manage the project and ensure its completion.

The Grillenburg Castle is located in the town of Tharandt, half-way between Dresden and Freiberg, and is embedded in the idyllic nature and recreation area of the Tharandt Forest in the district of Saxon Switzerland-Eastern Ore Mountains, just outside Dresden. “With today's signing of the deed of transfer, we are now taking the next steps towards building a state-of-the-art and urgently needed science and conference center for TU Dresden,” said TUD Chancellor Jan Gerken. "We are delighted about the substantial support from the federal government and the Free State of Saxony, which will enable us to develop this area of the Grillenburg Castle to high standards of sustainability, accommodation and experience. The center will give ourselves, the institutions in the DRESDEN-concept Science and Innovation Campus and, in the long run, other important partners such as the TUBAF, excellent facilities for conferences and networking while providing an outstanding atmosphere,” said Gerken.

“Grillenburg Castle will once again be a place with charisma – here in the Tharandt Forest, TU Dresden will make its excellence shine in a new way. With the agreement signed today, we have set the course for the creation of a very special center. Researchers from all over the world will be able to attend conferences in the castle, while tourists will be able to enjoy the allure of this beautiful area. I am looking forward to the start of the renovation, which the Free State of Saxony is supporting with EUR 18 million,” said Minister President Michael Kretschmer.

"The city of Tharandt has created the legal framework allowing for TU Dresden's ambitious construction project to be built. I am very grateful to everyone involved, especially the employees of our city and the city council. The baton has now been passed to the Free State of Saxony and TU Dresden. I wish you every strength and success for the rapid implementation of the project! The transfer of the land has laid the foundations for this important investment in the future,” said Silvio Ziesemer, Mayor of Tharandt.

© Horwath HTL

In the run-up to the development of the Grillenburg Castle and its surroundings into a science and conference center for TU Dresden, TUD commissioned a feasibility study, which was carried out by Horvath HTL as an external partner. In several stages, this study envisages the renovation of the Grillenburg Hunting Castle, the construction of a hotel village, and the renovation and presumably conversion of the “New Hunter's House” into a museum. The aim is to take into account high sustainability standards with regard to the building and construction materials used, and to energy efficiency and infrastructure, as well as the local and cultural characteristics of the area.

The current building design includes the restoration of the historic gardens and the organic integration of new buildings and rooms into the existing area and castle complex. The New Hunter's House will be converted into a museum and offer space for scientific exhibitions and presentations. Construction is expected to begin in 2025 and, according to current planning, will take up to four years to complete.

Background: Grillenburg Castle
The Grillenburg Hunting Castle complex is included in the list of cultural monuments of the Free State of Saxony. It consists of the castle (built in 1655), the New Hunter's House (built in 1938) with the remains of a Romanesque cellar, four other buildings (gardener's house, boathouse, bowling alley, dog kennel house), three sculptures, an enclosure and arched bridge (attributed to the architect Pöppelmann) and a castle gate from the 12^th century. The castle grounds themselves belong to the town of Tharandt. Located in the middle of the Tharandt Forest, Grillenburg Castle can be seen from the road. The castle building has a connection to the Wettin dynasty, as it was first mentioned as the hunting lodge of Margrave Dietrich von Meißen. The complex was last extended in 1938/39 as a country and hunting residence with the New Hunter's House in Heimatstil, referring to historicist tendencies.

Media contact:
TU Dresden
Matthias Fejes
Press Officer
Tel.: +49 351 463-32882