Hajo's Germania Lodge & Irish Pub

Bakery – Brewery – Inn – Hotel – and since 1551 family-owned
A small summary of the history of our house from the town archives of Rüdesheim am Rhein

The year 1883 began with a flood in Rüdesheim and as it released the town after several weeks, the locals started with tidying up the aftermath. Streets and houses were cleaned from the mud and they tried to dry the walls of the buildings from the inside with wood burning stoves. One of these locals who’s house was affected by the high water was the ale-brewer Friedrich Meuer.

In the night of February 17th in 1883, an uncovered iron made basket with ember tilt over in the skittle alley which adjoined to our house and set ours as well as the neighbouring shed on fire. The men of the local fire brigade and the voluntary fire brigade of the local gymnastic club rushed to help the residents but they were not able to help properly because of the different connectors of the water pipes. As they hesitated too long to tear down the tightly close adjoining buildings, the fire flashed over to the neighbouring buildings of Steingasse and Drosselgasse. At 4 am the fire was finally extinguished.

But already one hour later the alarm bell was ringing again. Due to flying sparks other buildings catched fire again. This time it was happening between Drosselgasse and Amselgasse.
Now all the fire brigades of the five neighbouring townships came to help and the train stations inspector Menninger was producing firefighting water by railroad engines. The spreading of the flames over to Amslegasse could be avoided and the town averted disaster. Only 2 firemen were injured by collapsing timbers, luckily no other men were harmed.

On May 20th in 1883 at noon the alarm bell rang again. The stables of carter Carl Mai in Christophelgasse were burning.

Two huge fires in the same year – in the Rhine river quay front of Rüdesheim yawned a smutty gap and on September 28th the newly erected Niederwald monument should be inaugurated.
The enormous ruins of the fire disaster attracted hosts of curious onlookers and even Emperor William I. had stopped his excursion train in Rüdesheim on June 16th in 1883 on his journey to Bad Ems. In the meantime the responsibles of the town were trying to accelerate the reconstruction by new building lines.

As a matter of fact the locals of Rüdesheim achieved to manage the reconstruction in record time and until the inauguration of the Niederwald monument the Rhine river quay sparkeld in a new glamour.

In the newly rebuilt house in Rheinstrasse 10, Friedrich Meuer established, besides the brewery, the „Hotel Germania“ – according to the Niederwald monument and its „Germania“.

By the way, this has been the only time that the house was destroyed.