A house where Peter I stayed (Logierhaus berühmter Kurgäster)
Pyrmont (currently Bad Pyrmont) is a resort town in Germany. In 1625, the County of Pyrmont came into possession of the Waldeck counts. In 1712, Emperor Charles VI granted Waldeck and Pyrmont the status of hereditary Imperial Principality. After discovering mineral springs, a health resort was established there in 1681, under the reign of Prince George Frederick of Waldeck and Pyrmont (Georg Friedrich Fürst von Waldeck-Pyrmont).
Peter I received treatment in Pyrmont in 1716. As the Tsar’s health became noticeably worse by the beginning of 1715, his physicians prescribed him an urgent trip to “a watering place”, recommending a stay at Bad Pyrmont. Peter left St. Petersburg on January 27, 1716 and arrived at Pyrmont on May 26 / June 6, 1716. He was accompanied by a large entourage, including physicians-in-ordinary Robert Erskine and Laurentius Blumentrost. At the princely castle, the Tsar was greeted with cannon fire. Later in the day, Peter began to drink local waters “a pound a day”. Doctor Johann Philipp Seip, a court physician of the Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont, examined the Tsar and “let blood”. The treatment course continued until June 14/25.
May 30 / June 10 was Peter’s birthday, but there were no celebrations as doctors prohibited him from drinking alcohol. During his treatment in Pyrmont, the Tsar “walked in the grove”, went horse riding, oftentimes attended theatrical performances, danced at balls, and dined with Count Frederick Adolphus of Lippe-Detmold (Friedrich Adolf Graf zur Lippe-Detmold) and Prince Frederick Anton Ulrich of Pyrmont (Friedrich Anton Ulrich Fürst von Waldeck-Pyrmont). In Pyrmont, the Tsar met French architect Jean-Baptiste Alexandre le Blond. After the meeting, the latter left for Saint Petersburg where he arrived on August 06/17.
While staying in Pyrmont, Peter made short trips to the Herrenhausen accompanied by German scientist Gottfried Leibniz, and to the Schwöbber castle of the Münchhausen family. On June 15/26, 1716, the Tsar left Pyrmont to go to Hanover.
In Pyrmont, Peter lived at No. 3 Brunnenstrasse street. It is a two-storey building with an attic and a balcony. For some period of time, it was part of the health resort facilities. Nowadays, the upper floors are residential, and the ground floor houses a restaurant and a pharmacy. The building bears a white marble memorial plaque (with the brown tinted edging) 48 х 97 cm large and a Plexiglass information board reading, “Hier wohnte 1716 / Zar Peter der Grosse” (“Tsar Peter the Great lived here in 1716”). There are photographs of the building dating from the early 20th century.
