The Befreiungshalle (Hall of Liberation) is a neoclassical monument on the Michelsberg hill above the town of Kelheim. It stands upstream of Regensburg on the river Danube at the confluence of the Danube and the Altmühl.
King Ludwig I of Bavaria ordered the Befreiungshalle to be built in order to commemorate the victories against Napoleon during the Wars of Liberation that lasted from 1813 to 1815.
The construction was started in 1842 by Friedrich von Gärtner in a mixture of Neoclassical and Christian styles. It occurred on Michelsberg, in a place previously occupied by a part of the ruins of a pre-historic fortification or town, thought by some to have been Alcimoennis. At the behest of the King, Leo von Klenze later altered the plans and completed the building in 1863.
The powerful-looking rotunda made of Kelheim limestone rests on a three-tier base, which is designed as an octadecagon. The outer facade is divided by 18 pillars with 18 colossal statues by Johann Halbig as allegories of the German tribes that took part in the battles. These are: 'Franconian, Bohemian, Tyrolean, Bavarian, Austrian, Prussian, Hanoverian, Moravian, Saxony, Silesian, Brandenburger, Pomeranian, Mecklenburg, Westphalia, Hesse, Thuringian, Rhinelander, Swabia' (circulating in this order with an arbitrary start).
References:The Clementinum is a historic complex of buildings in Prague. Until recently the complex hosted the National, University and Technical libraries, the City Library also being located nearby on Mariánské Náměstí. The Technical library and the Municipal library have moved to the Prague National Technical Library at Technická 6 since 2009. It is currently in use as the National Library of the Czech Republic.
Its history dates from the existence of a chapel dedicated to Saint Clement in the 11th century. A Dominican monastery was founded in the medieval period, which was transformed in 1556 to a Jesuit college. In 1622 the Jesuits transferred the library of Charles University to the Klementinum, and the college was merged with the University in 1654. The Jesuits remained until 1773, when the Klementinum was established as an observatory, library, and university by the Empress Maria Theresa of Austria.