 |  |  |  |
Yes, the spirit of Baden-Baden lives on in this hotel: Brenner’s Park Hotel and Spa! The fact that it has been more than just a hotel, indeed an institution, since it was founded is primarily thanks to the Oetker family. The family has been involved here on Lichtentaler Allee for nine decades now. Perhaps it is the special combination of family tradition and cosmopolitanism that has placed the hotel at the centre of Franco-German reconciliation. The Oetker family has always had a great deal of sympathy for our neighbours and the French savoir vivre. All the presidents of the fourth and fifth republics were guests at Brenners!
In 1962, the summit meeting between French President Charles de Gaulle and German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer even took place here. A year later, this meeting led to the signing of the Elysée Treaties, which are regarded as the basis of the friendship between our nations. A plaque in the reception hall commemorates the meeting of the two great statesmen.
Another great Frenchman was the inspiration – albeit indirectly – for the founding of the hotel: in honour of Napoleon’s adopted daughter, Princess Stephanie of Baden, the hotel, which was founded in 1834, was named “Hotel Stéphanie les Bains”.
It experienced a boom after Anton Brenner acquired the hotel in 1872. He later passed it on to his son Camille, who made the hotel legendary. Over the course of its history, the hotel was remodelled several times and extended to include the surrounding buildings. In 1912, the Hotel Minerva was added, which forms the centre of today’s Brenners Park Hotel and Spa.
In the 1920s, the Oetker family of manufacturers from Bielefeld became silent partners in the Hotel Minerva and in 1941, the hotel became fully owned by the family. Today, the Brenners is part of the Oetker Collection alongside the Hotel Le Bristol in Paris, the Château Saint-Martin & Spa in Vence and the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc on the Cap d’Antibes.
The guest book of the Brenner reads like an almanac of the 19th and 20th centuries right up to the present day. Unfortunately, we don’t have enough time to list the names of all the monarchs and politicians who have stayed here: From Bismarck, to the King of England, to Chancellor Merkel…
Let’s not forget the visit of Russian President Boris Yeltsin in 1997, when the presidential standard flew on the smaller building that houses the presidential suite. The Russian flag fluttered on the main building.
Many famous musicians and conductors have also stayed at the Brenners:
Franz Léhar, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Daniel Barenboim and Sir Simon Rattle. Not to mention all the other celebrities from the worlds of business, sport, science and show business.
But there is one special guest we must not forget: Gerhart Hauptmann, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. You can see his bust on the other side of the small footbridge, to the left of the magnolia.
Doesn’t it feel like you’re standing among the guests on the terrace without disturbing them?
The hotel layout is ingenious: it respects the desire for tranquillity and at the same time allows the house and its garden to appear as part of the park. The Oos separates and connects without you even realising it. Of course, the very special guests have a right to privacy, but you don’t want to appear as a fortress to the people of Baden-Baden either! – This requires tolerance – a Baden tradition, as you know. Incidentally, Brenners is not only ideal for political summit meetings, but also for culinary ones. At least according to the leading restaurant guides Guide Michelin and Gault Millaut, which regularly rate the restaurant with the highest honours.
