The central post office

Strasbourg’s central post office – a monument to imperial power

The central post office occupies a surface area of 6500 m² and was built between 1896 and 1899. It takes up a whole block in the centre of Neustadt, with a different facade on each of its 4 sides. It is an excellent illustration of the vision the architects of the German district had for this part of the city, with a carefully-designed decor intended to show off imperial might.

The main facade, on avenue de la Marseillaise, is not, however representative of the original building, as it was destroyed by bombing in 1944 and rebuilt in 1949 in a completely different style, without the statues of famous emperors, such as Frederick Barbarossa, Maximillian I and Rudolph of Hapsburg, which used to stand outside. The facade featured other statues of more contemporary figures, including Wilhelm I, Frederick III and Wilhelm II (who was on the throne when the post office was built), which were decapitated during the night of 20 to 21 November 1918, before being removed.

A neo-Gothic castle in Neustadt

The 3 other facades have kept their original appearance, of a neo-Gothic castle with corner towers and portals crowned with tympans. The rear facade, in avenue de la Liberté, includes a centrally-positioned avant-corps with 2 stone oriel windows and a fine carved balcony. The entrance in rue Wencker affords a view of one of the 4 interior courtyards.