Illenau Asylum

Illenau, near Achern in the Grand Duchy of Baden, was opened in 1842. It was a purpose built asylum, planned by the first superintendent, Christian Friedrich Wilhelm Roller. The institution treated both curable and incurable patients.

Consisting of two long parallel buildings, joined by four wings, the large structure was originally separated into ten separate departments for each sex. Accommodation was generally dormitories of between eight and twenty beds, however boarders paying high fees could be accommodated in private rooms. Each department had access to a garden or airing court.

The buildings were originally designed to accommodate 400 patients, and at the end of 1851 housed 414 patients. At this time there were four medical officers and almost eighty attendants to care for the patients.

Today the Illenau buildings are still standing. It ceased operating as a psychiatric hospital in 1940 and from 1940 to 1945 housed a school. From 1945 until the 1990s the buildings served as a barracks for the French army.