Downton does Deutsche

I've lived in this area almost six years now and have only today been around possibly the most prestigious tourist sight in the city of Essen, Villa Hügel, the home to the Krupp dynasty from 1873 until the end of WWII.

It's an amazing house of 269 rooms, designed by Krupp himself and built using his company's steel products, our tour was organised by the American Women's Club Düsseldorf and as such had a very nice tame guide who was happy to share all the old history (and much gossip) in English.

I find it quite sad, that despite the house surviving the huge bombing attacks of the second world war (the city of Essen, where Villa Hügel sits, was pretty much flattened due to it being such an industrial area) it has been unlived in since 1945 (although by all accounts it was a cold and draughty place to live) and that the family company Krupp ceased to be family run when Alfried Krupp died in 1967 (altho he had taken care of the company by reorganising it as a corporation and foundation for scientific research before his death). Now of course Krupp is best known as part of ThyssenKrupp, one of the world's largest steel producers and Villa Hügel with its fading glory just a diminshing echo.