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German Roots Trip 2003 - Contents

SEEKING OUR GERMAN ROOTS

Chapter III    
May 16 - 20, 2003

MECKLENBURG
Von Pressentin Family History - Daschow

Sunday, May 18 - Daschow

We had told Friedrich-Franz that we would like to visit Daschow and perhaps have our dinner there. So, he obligingly led us over another maze of little country roads from Kuppentin to the beautiful "Hotel Schloss Daschow." Another former von Pressentin manor house, Daschow underwent enlargement and improvement with succeeding generations of von Pressentins. In 1900 what had been a "house" became a "stately home" in the English Park style.

Just driving up to Daschow you are impressed with its elegance. Von Pressentin relatives occupied the mansion and estate until the Russian occupation when the current owner, then 71 years old, was forced out and the estate was confiscated. During the GDR years, the upper story was converted into apartments and the ground floor became a doctor’s office and cooperative shops. The dining hall became a village hall.

Again, the reunification of Germany in 1990 gave Daschow a new lease on life. It was completely renovated and became a hotel and restaurant. The year 2000 von Pressentin family reunion was held at Daschow. And, on her visit to Mecklenburg in 2001, Karen stayed here. We had originally planned to spend a night at the hotel, but now we at least wanted to enjoy dinner in these elegant surroundings.

We said farewell and many, many thanks to Friedrich-Franz and Chris at the hotel entrance. They had to hurry back to Hamburg to turn in their rental car. We made a reservation for 7:00 P.M. dinner and spent the intervening time exploring the hotel grounds.

The former von Pressentin manor has a lovely setting on a quiet lake, surrounded by trees and with swans gliding along the water’s surface. Just everything one would want in one's "schloss."

Supping in the high-ceilinged dining room, gazing out at the lake from a deck framed by wrought iron work, admiring the ceramic room heaters--very similar to the ones in Vienna’s Schonbrun Palace, well, it was hard not to long for the "good old days" and to wish we could have been part of the family enjoying all this elegance.

The hotel is also very proud of its heritage and with their menu was a timeline of the estate’s history. Among the inscrutable German words, I could find "von Pressentin" mentioned again and again. I also gleaned the information that:

In 1235 AD the village was given the Slavic name of "Daschow." In the Thirteenth Century, Germanic tribes moved in from the west and took over this village and the surrounding region. By the 1600's von Pressentins are mentioned as being owners of the estate, and the lands encompassing the village.

 

Here is a link to Hotel Schloss Daschow with pictures. Once you reach the site, click on "Rundgang" for a series of photos of the hotel.

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