Sanagarten

When the Russian writer Maxim Gorky was a patient at the St. Blasien pulmonary sanatorium in the winter of 1921/22, the so-called Sanagarten did not yet exist. However, the busy construction work on site, which the poet followed with curiosity and even mentioned in a letter to Lenin, was closely linked to the park's creation.
This involved the work prior to the construction of the new west wing, which first required the demolition and removal of the mountain behind it. The resulting earth was used to fill the area sloping down towards Bernau-Menzenschwander Straße, on which the new terraced garden was later created. With the complex, completed in 1925, the planners not only succeeded in creating an outstanding example of prestigious garden architecture – lovingly crafted details created a place full of magic and poetry, which served as an edification for the sanatorium's patients and as a promenade. Even today, the park, with its nostalgic charm, leaves hardly any visitor unmoved; it speaks of a bygone era and the former spa splendor of St. Blasien and is a defining element of the townscape.
After the park became municipal property in 2015, volunteers from the Sanagarten eV (Friends of the Sanagarten) association began to make the park accessible and enjoyable to the public again. It is now considered a cultural monument of exceptional importance, attracting considerable interest from experts. Nevertheless, the structural fabric of the Sanagarten is acutely endangered, and only the renovation concept developed with the monument preservation authorities, which is currently being implemented, will save the park. Restoring St. Blasien's little Sanssouci to its former glory soon will require significant efforts from the city of St. Blasien—but also the support of donors and sponsors.

Text: Barbara Baur

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