Built between 1704 and 1706 under the direction of Gottfried von Gedeler (photo: StadtAE VI.J.315, the orangery around 1890), the orangery is an integral part of Erlangen's palace gardens. Probably unimaginable today, in 1898 the Royal Bavarian State Ministry of the Interior proposed demolishing the building in favor of constructing a chemical institute for the university. However, this sparked huge protests from the citizens of Erlangen and the city therefore decided to donate a plot of land to the state for the construction (Fahrstraße 17).
In the city council minutes of the meeting on March 3, 1898, it becomes clear that the decision to donate the land was made on the "[...] condition that the orangery building be preserved in the expectation that no further construction would take place on the palace garden. This decision was made on the condition that the University would continue to cooperate with the city in the future to prevent any further overbuilding of the palace garden." The Chemical Institute building in Fahrstraße, which was completed in 1901, was demolished in 1974 as part of completely new plans.
(From the city newspaper "Rathausplatz 1" - October 2024 issue)