Stuttgart’s Marienplatz in the south of the city dates back to a park from 1876. It has only existed in its current form since 2003. Read everything you need to know about this urban center in Stuttgart here.
Stuttgart’s Marienplatz in the south of the city dates back to a park from 1876. It has only existed in its current form since 2003. Read everything you need to know about this urban center in Stuttgart here.
King Wilhelm II of Württemberg named the square, which previously consisted mainly of a park, after his fiancée Marie zu Waldeck und Pyrmont. Today, the square is roughly pentagonal and 1.6 hectares in size. It is located in the Stuttgart-Süd district and is bordered by Filderstraße, Marienplatz-Straße, Kaiser-Bau and Bundesstraße 14. There is also an underground tram stop, which is also called Marienplatz.
To the north-west of the square is an open horseshoe consisting of a double-row avenue of trees with red-flowering chestnut trees. To the south is the round pavilion of an ice cream parlor and in the middle of the square is the valley station of the cog railroad. This train crosses Filderstraße via a ramp. It leads up the Alte Weinsteige to Degerloch.
The infrastructure below the square is also important: the main collector of the Nesenbach stream runs here, which turns to the north-east at Marienplatz. There is also a deep bunker under the square, which is now used by musicians.
In 1876, a park was laid out for the first time on the current site of Stuttgart’s Marienplatz. From the end of the 19th century until 1916, a circus building with a modern circus ring stood on the square. This had to close due to a lack of fire protection measures and gave way to the popular “Anlägle”, a wild flower meadow. Before the Second World War, the Nazis held marches on Marienplatz and renamed it “Platz der SA” (SA Square). And until the 1990s, the square was primarily a meeting place for the drug scene, which no longer had a place in Stuttgart-Mitte.
In July 2003, Marienplatz, redesigned according to the plans of architect Heinz Lermann, was inaugurated. Together with Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen AG, the city took care of a redesign in 2011, so that Stuttgart’s Marienplatz now has a total area of around 16,500 square meters. The aim was to open up the partly inhospitable and obstructed square.
According to Zeese Stadtplanung, Marienplatz Stuttgart was for a long time a place “more for dogs than for children” or even a “large traffic island […]: There was a lot of wild and rampant greenery, but without urban planning order, there was a lot of shade and little sun.”
Today, Marienplatz Stuttgart is still an important traffic junction, but it is also a neighborhood square and play area. The new square design is characterized by a large multifunctional core area, the café in the center. The avenue of chestnut trees, the new cogwheel train stop, the subway platform and the pavilion are the most important points of contact. In addition, the square is at ground level everywhere and therefore accessible to the disabled. All underpasses have been closed, which has reduced the adjacent traffic areas.
Zeese Stadtplanung + Architektur wanted to design an open, transparent square. The ring avenue serves as an inviting gesture on all sides. The square is also open for use. Since the redesign in 2011, the urban scene around Stuttgart’s Marienplatz has taken a positive turn. There are now restaurants, bars, easy access to the popular cog railroad and the starting point for the Stadtmitte-Degerloch wine route.
During the redesign of Marienplatz in Stuttgart, it turned out that the square has a largely secret inner life. Beneath the concrete slab is a bunker, which for a long time was above all damp, cool, gloomy and eerie. A double-secured barred gate was the entrance.
In the meantime, however, a lot is happening here too. The Stuttgart city council has set up rehearsal rooms in the bunker so that death metal bands, for example, can play their loud music in peace and quiet. Up on the square, none of this can be heard.
Access to the Marienplatz bunker is only possible by prior appointment. It’s worth it, as there are interesting corners to see, such as the unlit engine room and a crack in the wall: During the bombing nights in the summer of 1944, there was a direct hit here in which 15 people died in the bunker. 22 people were injured. Film shoots and Caritas shelters are other contemporary uses of the bunker.
The Stuttgart city railroad had to run its tube under the bunker. This is why the Marienplatz stop is so deep. It now offers a direct connection to the “Zacke” rack railroad.
After a turbulent past with circus performers, SA troops, drug addicts and musicians, Marienplatz in Stuttgart now belongs mainly to young, hip parents. Students also like to sit on the square, enjoy the sun and drink a coffee. The water features, the small football pitch and the large flight of steps offer plenty of opportunities for children to play.
At the inauguration of the new square in 2003, the then mayor Wolfgang Schuster described Marienplatz as the “Arena of the South”, which did not please everyone. The concrete-heavy design was a thorn in the side of the neighbors, but the improvements in 2011 have smoothed the waters. The Marienplatz festival now takes place here once a year.
Another interesting place in Stuttgart is the Hungry Eyes glasses store.
