„Des goht euch en Dreck an, wie i wohn!“ (“It's none of your damn business how I live") – these were the words with which Theodor Heuss greeted waiting photographers as he moved into his final home in Stuttgart’s Killesberg. Today this detached house, occupied from 1959-1963 by Germany’s first Federal President after he left office, is open to visitors. On the ground floor visitors can walk around Heuss’ lounge and dining-room and take a look at his study. These three inter-connecting rooms, reconstructed using original period furniture, offer a fascinating glimpse of life in the late 1950s.
After this introduction to Heuss the man, it is well worth moving down to the garden level of the house where a permanent exhibition traces the Life and Times of Germany’s first Federal President. This gives visitors the chance to gain a more personal perspective on abstract historical issues by viewing them through the prism of Heuss’ life.
A wide range of objects, sound recordings, photos and films brings history to life and offers a fascinating insight into key periods in Germany’s history: the Empire, Weimar Republic, National Socialism and the modern Federal Republic. Central to the exhibition is a consideration of the question: how could democracy be made to work in Germany? The exhibition never shies away from difficult questions, such as Theodor Heuss’ agreement (as a young member of parliament) to Hitler’s “Enabling Act” of 1933.
In addition to the permanent exhibition, there is also in-depth information on key figures, events and aspects of the 20th century and the house is also used as a venue for a variety of other cultural events.
