Speech OB 04.09.2011

The spoken word counts!

Dear Guild Assembly,

A week of celebrations in which our New Chemnitz Town Hall turns 100 years old also includes honourable, magnificent and therefore very special guests.
And as the profession of the tower keeper is inextricably linked to the town hall, the night watchman and tower keeper meeting to mark the town hall anniversary is a special gift for us.

I am delighted that you are our guests and it is a great pleasure for me that you have signed the city's Golden Book.

Chemnitz has already hosted a night watchman and tower meeting twice. And they responded to the call.
In 2003, 100 guild members from eight European countries and around 50 locations in our city attended. An event that is still talked about today.
Today I would like to welcome your guild to Chemnitz for the third time.

Over the past two days, you have been able to get to know our city, with its many pubs and good, local beer.
And I'm sure your gaze has wandered - if only out of habit - from the market square up to the city's towers. You will have noticed that the towers of our town hall form a very special ensemble.

The oldest and largest tower is 64 metres tall and is also the origin of Chemnitz's tower tradition.
According to records, a guardhouse was set up on the tower in 1488, where a caretaker or tower keeper lived.
He was also the bell ringer of St Jakobi and provided the tower music.

At this time, at the end of the 15th century, the Chemnitz town hall was also erected next door as a stone building for the first time.
Prior to this, the city council had only had a wooden building at its disposal, which burned down time and again.
The new stone building was attached directly to the High Tower, so that the town hall was then structurally connected to the town church.

From this high tower, the tower keeper still shows his guests the beautiful view over the roofs of the town. And at Christmas time, for example, visitors to the market listen to the call of the hour, which means that the Christmas market and the mulled wine parlours will close in a few minutes.

The smaller brother of the High Tower was built together with the wooden town hall and was then integrated into the late Gothic stone building after its demolition.
Of course, the town hall tower had to have a clock and a bell.

A so-called "Seigersteller", who was responsible for winding the clock and ringing it on time, had been working here since 1490. But not to everyone's satisfaction.
This is shown by a complaint from the year 1536: the Chemnitz clockmaker had neglected his duties to such an extent that it was said that "Chemnitz people don't really live in time".

This may still have been the case in the 16th century.

But by the turn of the century at the latest, Chemnitz was on its way to becoming a major city. Entrepreneurs, industrialists, researchers and merchants had created an expanding economy.
And with the economic wealth, culture, architecture and social life developed in the city.

The existing town hall buildings were no longer sufficient. A new town hall was to be built.
From 1907 to 1911, the proud and lofty building was constructed under the direction of city planning officer Richard Möbius.
It was the new civic symbol of the modern industrial city of Chemnitz. And the tower of the New Town Hall also bears this energetic character.

Fires and wars repeatedly gnawed at the walls of the town hall, the church and the towers. The Old Town Hall and the High Tower were almost completely destroyed in the Second World War.
However, the people found the strength to rebuild the houses, procure new bells and renovate the towers.

Salutation,
It takes people who stand up for the town halls, towers and their history. The 100th anniversary of the town hall also belongs to those who are committed to preserving and maintaining the old walls.

I am very grateful that Chemnitz is passionate about the city's history and intensively cultivates its tower tradition.

My great thanks go to our tower keeper Stefan Weber. Thanks to him, the tower tradition in Chemnitz has once again enjoyed a very good reputation for more than 20 years. He has since been supported by the tower keeper Alexander Albrecht, whom I would also like to thank.
Today, the two of them take on the beautiful duties of the tower keeper on a voluntary basis.
With love and enthusiasm, Stefan Weber talks about the nature of the city, the duties of the tower keeper and the history of the building.
And you will certainly have learnt that there is a lot to tell in a conversation with him.

Or you can take a look behind the scenes of the town hall yourself. Today we are opening the doors from 2 to 5 pm.
The jewel of the town hall, the newly renovated council chamber with the famous Klinger painting "Labour, Prosperity, Beauty", can be seen, as can the vehicles of the professional fire brigade, gifts from Chemnitz's twin towns and old town council minutes from the last 100 years.

Citizens will also be able to admire the city's Golden Book. In it, you will read the newly inscribed entry:
"Reception of the members of the German Night Watchmen and Tower Guild on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Chemnitz New Town Hall"

It is a good tradition for guests of honour from our city to sign the Golden Book. I cordially invite you, dear members of the guild, to do so.