During World War II the hospital witnessed the euthanasia of around 7 thousand persons.

History of the structure

In July 1899 the authorities of the Poznan Province purchased 27 ha of land for the construction of a psychiatric hospital. This was a land located to the east of Międzyrzecz, close to the river, formerly belonging to a townsman August Jockisch. The design was prepared in 1901 by an architect Kübler. The hospital complex was erected in three stages. In the years 1901-1904 administrative and utility buildings were erected on the axis of the complex, plus pavilions for patients (buildings for women on the west side, buildings for men on the east side), personnel accommodation, a bowling alley and a church. A ceremonious opening of the 4th Lunatic Hospital of the Poznań Province in Obrzyce near Międzyrzecz took place on 2 November 1904. In the years 1908-1909 the hospital was expanded based on the design of an architect Jahn. Four pavilions for patients, houses for physicians, nurses and service persons were erected at that time. At the same time, the property was expanded through purchasing 29.5 ha of land. The second expansion, based on the design of the same architect, took place between 1911 and 1914. Additional pavilions for patients and residential buildings were built. The hospital could accommodate 1200 patients and its personnel counted 300 persons. The complex featured a sports hall and a pitch, while a bathing zone with pools functioned in a forest at the Obra river. The complex included all municipal facilities and networks necessary for uninterrupted operation. The entire complex was supplemented with a local wastewater treatment plant, a nurse village and a cemetery divided into a Catholic, Protestant and Jewish sections, all located behind the north fence. In the years 1922-1928 a part of the hospital complex became an administrative centre of the newly established Border Province of Poznan - West Prussia. In the 1920s, in place of the old wards for the mentally ill, a nursing home, a clinic for women, a ward for infants with a creche and a tuberculosis ward were opened. In the years 1942-1945 (World War II), as part of the Nazi-organised euthanasia action, at least 7000 persons were killed in the hospital. The bodies were buried in collective graves in the hospital graveyard. After 1945 the State Neurological and Psychiatric Hospital was established in Obrzyce. The complex has continued to function to this day.

Site description

The hospital complex is situated on the eastern outskirts of Międzyrzecz, in the vast area between a road to Pszczew and the Obra river. It constitutes a compact functional and spatial complex, set on a clear, regular floor plan. The buildings are made of clinker bricks, feature roofs clad in ceramic tiles and exhibit historicising and eclectic features.

The complex is symmetrically planned along the north-south axis. On the axis, behind the main gate, the following are arranged in a sequence: an administration building, a water tower, a former washhouse, a machinery house, a boiler house, a workshop, an ice house and a mortuary (all built in the years 1901-1904). Parallel to the above, there are four rows of pavilions for patients: two rows of former buildings for women on the west side and nearly identical buildings for men on the east side. A former director’s villa, a house for physicians and a church are clustered at the gate (1901-1904). Houses for the personnel are arranged along the side alleys. A specially secured building for dangerous patients is located on the north side. The edges of the complex feature former pavilions for calm patients: two for women on the west side (one of them currently housing a school), one for men on the east side. A cemetery and buildings of the former nurses’ village are located behind the north fence.

The hospital complex is situated on the eastern outskirts of Międzyrzecz, in the vast area between a road to Pszczew and the Obra river. It constitutes a compact functional and spatial complex, set on a clear, regular floor plan. The buildings are made of clinker bricks, feature roofs clad in ceramic tiles and exhibit historicising and eclectic features.

The complex is symmetrically planned along the north-south axis. On the axis, behind the main gate, the following are arranged in a sequence: an administration building, a water tower, a former washhouse, a machinery house, a boiler house, a workshop, an ice house and a mortuary (all built in the years 1901-1904). Parallel to the above, there are four rows of pavilions for patients: two rows of former buildings for women on the west side and nearly identical buildings for men on the east side. A former director’s villa, a house for physicians and a church are clustered at the gate (1901-1904). Houses for the personnel are arranged along the side alleys. A specially secured building for dangerous patients is located on the north side. The edges of the complex feature former pavilions for calm patients: two for women on the west side (one of them currently housing a school), one for men on the east side. A cemetery and buildings of the former nurses’ village are located behind the north fence.

Visitor access. Limited access to the historic building. The structures can be viewed from the outside.

Author of the note: compiled by Anna Jackiewicz, Regional Branch of the National Institute of Cultural Heritage in Zielona Góra, 09-11-2017

Bibliography

• Dramowicz W., Obrzyce. Dzieje szpitala, Międzyrzecz 2004
• Kowalski S., Zabytki architektury województwa lubuskiego, Zielona Góra 2010, p. 266.
• Grecki H., Park przyszpitalny. Ewidencja dendrologiczno-techniczna, Szczecin 1991, Archives of the Regional Monument Protection Office in Gorzów Wielkopolski.