Ever heard of a mansion with twenty bathrooms? That was the Budge-Palais. It became famous for its numerous bathrooms. We stand before a building steeped in history. It is a testament to Hamburg’s past. This is the Budge-Palais.
Originally, this site housed a classicist villa. Architect Martin Haller built it in 1883 and 1884. Ivan Gans, a shipbroker, commissioned it. The villa boasted about twenty rooms. It included a grand entrance hall. A sweeping staircase led to the Alster meadows. Even then it had modern comforts. It featured a water heating system. The construction cost 150000 Mark.
In 1900, Henry Budge purchased the villa. He was an American businessman with German roots. He expanded it in stages. The houses Magdalenenstraße 50 and Milchstraße 11 were added. The result was a sprawling complex. It had French Neo-Renaissance style. There were also Baroque and Danish-classicist elements. The grounds included coach houses and stables. There were also greenhouses, a flower hall, and a teahouse. The core of the original villa remained. The two-story central section and outer wings were kept. A semi-circular central projection faced the Alster. It included a veranda. The roof was expanded and side wings added. The Budge family also installed an underground bowling alley. It even had an elevator. The Budges moved in 1903. The entire renovation took until 1913. The estate’s value reached 2.5 million Reichsmark.
The Budge-Palais earned a nickname. Many Hamburgers called it “the bathhouse.” It had so many bathrooms. Peter Kahn visited the Palais as a child. He remembered that the Budges came from America. Bathrooms were necessities for people of good taste there.
Henry Budge gifted his wife Emma a special room. It was a mirrored hall in historicist style. It served for private performances. Parisian decorators designed the Rococo interior. Martin Haller considered it almost unbearable trash. Yet, famous artists graced the hall. Enrico Caruso, Paul Hindemith, and Ottilie Metzger performed.
Henry Budge died in 1928. He and Emma planned to donate their art collection to the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe. Emma expanded this after Henry’s death. In 1932, she planned to give the entire estate to Hamburg. It would become a museum.
The Nazi rise to power changed everything. Emma Budge retracted her offer in 1933. She feared the political climate. Her final will named Jewish relatives as heirs. She appointed executors to manage her estate. The city of Hamburg should not gain control.
Emma Budge died in 1937. The executors offered the Palais for sale. Karl Kaufmann claimed the property for the city. In 1938, the city acquired the Budge-Palais. The price was 305000 Reichsmark.
The contents of the house were auctioned off in Berlin. The proceeds went into a blocked account. The Nazi state seized most of the inheritance. The last residents, Siegfried and Ella Budge, had to leave. They died during Nazi persecution.
The Budge-Palais became the seat of the Reich Governor. It was a power center for Hamburg’s Nazis. Bunkers were built on the grounds.
After the war, British troops seized the complex. It served as a boarding house and officers’ club. Later, it became a hotel.
In 1956, the British returned the Budge-Palais to Hamburg. The Hochschule für Musik und Theater moved in. Modern extensions were added.
The Spiegelsaal served students until 1980. It was then dismantled and rebuilt. It now resides in the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe.
The Budge family sought restitution. In 2011, the city reached an agreement. They paid compensation to the heirs. The Budge-Palais remains city property.
Today, the Hochschule für Musik und Theater occupies the Budge-Palais. A bronze plaque commemorates Henry and Emma Budge. Two Stolpersteine honor Ella and Siegfried Budge. The Budge-Palais stands as a reminder of Hamburg’s complex history. It echoes a time of both splendor and sorrow.