Hotel Breidenbacher Hof - A Capella Hotel, Düsseldorf

History in Brief:
In 1808, 42 year old Wilhelm Breidenbach; decided to build a hotel in the suburbs of Düsseldorf.
It closed in 1999, and reopened in 2008.
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HISTORY IN DETAIL:
In 1808, when 42 year old Wilhelm Breidenbach  decided to build a hotel in the suburbs of Dusseldorf, the times were turbulent. The  French had just occupied the city for the   second  time, but the citizens of Dusseldorf did  not seem too unhappy about the situation.
1811, Napoleon was popular. He knew how to engender economic hope, and he not only promised to raise   Dusseldorf  to the state  of a bishop’s see, but also to locate a university in the city. By this time the “Hotel Breidenbacher Hof” was virtually  completed.
In 1812, the first guests entered the house  on  “Alleestrasse, with a   frontage of 100 feet”. Dusseldorrs premier master builder, Adolph von Vagedes, had  helped prepare the plans for this first Breidenbacher Hof, and an excellent building  now   waited to welcome its guests. During its  180 year history the hotel has seen frequent expansion and  restructuring - not always to its advantage.
However, the Breidenbacher Hof was always the   hotel chosen by  celebrities who visited the city. Some of them kept  diaries and mentioned the hotel favourably - Clara and  Robert Schumann, for example.
Other guests of the hotel received wide press coverage.  After the death of  Wilhelm Breidenbach, the restaurateur  Capellen-Heydendahl  took over the hotel. It subsequently changed hands several more times,  sometimes in dramatic circumstances.
1872: The  economic situation of the  hotel took  a turn for the worse when the Dusseldorfer  Baubank bought the hotel as an  investment. However, it always remained the focus of high society.
1914–1918: The hotel survived  World War I without major  losses, although it was  commandeered as a billet for officers. The army  administration paid little and damage was  considerable.
1933, a new era began for the hotel, which was now  called the   “Palasthotel Breidenbacher Hof”, when it was taken over by Georg Linsenmeyer.  The  face of the hotel had been changed dramatically by then. Influenced by the “new  realism”  style, the architect  Professor Emil Fahrenkamp had altered the hotel so  radically that none of its former charm remained. The frontages had been split up into large geometric areas featuring  high, narrow  windows, so that the building  seemed to emanate a cool reserve inside and  out. Consul Dr. Linsenmeyer, a hotelier of the old school  and an experienced historian,  soon helped the hotel to recover its first  class status.
1943: Not for long, however,  for in the  night before Whitsun 1943 the hotel was bombed. At the end of the fourties the hotel was  painstakingly rebuilt, using  Fahrenkamp’s original plans.
The hotel that was considerably damaged in the Second World War, was taken over in1953 by consul Dr Georg Linsenmeyer, a renowned historian and hotelier. Together with his daughter Renate, Dr Linsenmeyer restores the building and decorates the interior with fine works of art.
The rooms are decorated with art and antiques from all periods such as expensive Aubusson goblins and fine 19th century Dutch paintings, including Charles Leickert’s Winter landscape from 1871 (¤40,000-60,000, pictured above). The choice of antique furniture, wooden sculptures and the many large Chinese and Japanese vases made a stay in the hotel a unique experience.
The Collection of the Breidenbacher Hof contains highlights in many fields of art. The strength of the collection lies in its furniture, in particular French 18th century bureau’s and commodes, German 18th and 19th century commodes, mirrors, polychrome painted cupboards and chests.
The Aubusson and Flemish tapestries are of particular importance. A Brussels tapestry “Eurydice” was estimated ¤20,000-40,000. Other tapestries depict formal gardens and architectural elements. Two monumental floral gilt wooden, metal and gesso appliques, made in Rome, circa 1770-1780 are estimated ¤7,000-10,000..
In 1985, Dusseldorfs No. 1 hotel was acquired by ,  Georg R. Rafael. As a result of the major  renovation work that has been carried out   throughout the building, the Breidenbacher Hof now combined  the elegance, style and  ambience of a historic grand hotel with the very latest in service and technology.
1999: the hotel closed. The hotel had 102 rooms, 24 junior suites and 6 suites. Its F&N outlets were the Breidenbacher Eck (light german cuisine), Grill Royal (gourmet restaurant), Trader Vic´s (polynesian cuisine), Bar Royal.
In 2004 Sotheby’s auctioned The Breidenbacher Hof’s collection.
2008: the hotel was totally rebuilt, and reopened under the management of the Capella Hotel Group.