Hasenbergturm Stuttgart

The Hasenbergturm was an 1879 sandstone lookout tower on Stuttgart’s Hasenberg hill. It stood 36 metres tall with a 5.7-metre base and 184 steps inside. The tower gave views across the Swabian Alb, the Black Forest, the Odenwald and the Swabian Forest. It was built by the Stuttgart Beautification Society after they chose August Beyer’s design. The society spent 25 800 marks on construction and celebrated its opening on 18 August 1879. The tower became a popular city landmark until it was demolished in March 1943. The Technical Emergency Corps blew it up so it could not guide enemy bombers. Only a stump remained after the blast. In the 1950s the society tried without success to win compensation for rebuilding. Later the Birkenkopf rubble mound offered a better viewpoint, so plans were dropped. Today the site holds a 1882 statue of poet Wilhelm Hauff and large sculptures by Otto Herbert Hajek. Visitors walk through the Hasenberganlage park to reach the old tower base. The grassy mound still frames wide views over Stuttgart and the surrounding ranges. Nearby benches let people rest while they look toward the distant forests and hills. The memorial to Wilhelm Hauff stands beside the stump, and Hajek’s abstract forms add modern contrast. The green space is quiet except for the wind moving through the trees.