Festhalle Frankfurt
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| Full name | Festhalle Messe Frankfurt |
|---|---|
| Location | Frankfurt, Hessen, Germany |
| Owner | Messe Frankfurt GmbH |
| Capacity | 13,500 (concerts) 9,850 (with seats) |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | June 11, 1907 |
| Opened | May 19, 1909 |
| Renovated | 1980s |
| Architect | |
Festhalle Frankfurt is a multi-purpose arena located in Frankfurt, Germany. The interior of the dome at its highest reaches a height of 40 meters. It provides an area of 5,646 square metres, offering by a variable grandstand system space for up to 8,500 people (together with the two tiers) seated, and 13,500 people unseated.
At the end of the 19th century, the Frankfurt fair was held in various facilities. Frequently it was housed in the Hippodrome in Sachsenhausen (the quarters located south of the river Main), while at other times it was held in single-use pavilions. After a time many felt the city needed a dedicated exhibition hall. A competition was advertised, and the plans of the Marburg architect Friedrich von Thiersch made the short list of finalists. After several amendments, von Thiersch's concept was widely accepted. Construction began on 11 June 1907. On 19 May 1909, it was officially opened by Kaiser Wilhelm II. At the time of its completion, the Festhalle was the largest dome in Europe.
The German Gymnastics Festival and the International Air Show, were the first events in the new building. In 1914, at the outbreak of the First World War, the banquet hall was turned into a camp for soldiers. After the war the hall reverted to its original purpose.
On the night of 8 to 9 November 1938, during the November pogroms hundreds of Frankfurt's Jewish citizens were driven across the city centre to the Festhalle and some were seriously mistreated. The noted Frankfurt Opera singer Hans Erl was forced to sing "In Diesen Heil'gen Hallen" ("In These Holy Halls"). From here, the first mass transports went into the Nazi concentration camps. The Festhalle is thus of considerable relevance for the Holocaust. The Frankfurt physician and Holocaust survivor Dr. Max Kirschner describes the deportation in his memoirs. Since 1991, a plaque displayed in the rotunda bears remembrance of this dark spot in history.
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