Alvesse Manor

The Alvesse Manor is a young manor in the Braunschweig Knighthood. It was established in 1896 on the southern outskirts of Alvesse and was completely newly built on the existing agricultural land.

Julius Richard Brendecke, the great-great-grandfather of the current owner Alexander Brendecke, had leased the Duttenstedt domain near Peine, which was in Prussian possession, before the construction of the Alvesse Manor. Prussia sold the domain, and Julius Richard Brendecke was unsuccessful as a bidder at the auction. Through marriage, large agricultural areas had been added in the Vallstedt district, and so he decided to move his entire operation to Vallstedt or Alvesse. He had a manor house built in the Historicist style. Braunschweig city architect Ludwig Winter provided advice for this. The executing architect was the ducal government architect Bohnsack, a student of Winter and builder of the Herzog August Library in Wolfenbüttel.

However, a manor not only includes a manor house and a large farmstead but also a representative park. The approximately 3.2-hectare park is a typical late 19th-century design. It was laid out in a landscape style with wide lawns, peripheral wooded areas, and an interesting tree population. Especially the now over one hundred-year-old trees make it a sublime and balanced-looking showpiece.

The path system, radiating in large circles from the manor house, constantly offers new views and sightlines. The park is enlivened with small stone sculptures and ornamental elements. Unfortunately, old plans do not exist. It is probable that Julius Richard Brendecke carried out the design of the park according to his own considerations and under his own direction.

Before the branch canal to Salzgitter was built, the park extended westward into the wet meadow floodplain of the Dummbruchgraben. However, from 1938 to 1940, the meadow areas were drained with the excavated soil from the canal construction, so that they were subsequently used as arable land. Another turning point was World War II. In 1944, the southern part of the manor house was destroyed by a 250 kg bomb. Six more bombs devastated the park.

Renovation only began in 1952, extending over several construction phases for years. The destroyed part of the manor house, which was half of the living space, was not rebuilt. The small wall in front of the current entrance staircase and foundation remnants of the two towers recall the original size of the house. Furthermore, the double rotunda can still be seen to the east as a driveway in front of the former house entrance.

The farmstead bordering the park to the south was built together with the manor house. Today it is adapted to modern agricultural conditions. In the middle of the courtyard stands a multi-purpose hall, which was originally built as a pigsty. To the east is the former horse stable. Downstairs were stalls for the carriage horses and cold-blooded horses. In the village, there is still another farmstead where the draft oxen were housed. The long barn in the south served for hay and straw storage along its entire length. Today, the buildings are used as silo facilities for grain storage and as storage for machinery and materials.

The Alvesse Manor is still an agricultural enterprise today. Modern agriculture is practiced on its own and leased land. In addition, firewood is produced and marketed. The property, manor house, and park are private and can only be visited on special occasions.