Hildesheim Asylum

Hanover’s provincial asylum was established at Hildesheim in 1827 in the former monastery of St. Michael, to replace the combined prison and madhouse (Zucht- und Tollhaus) in Celle. It was originally intended for approximately 110 inmates. An extension to accommodate incurable psychiatric patients was added in 1833. In 1848/1849, the asylum was extended again, this time by a large new building in H-form. Ludwig Snell, formerly of Eichberg asylum, became the superintendent of the hospital in 1856. He was responsible for the re-organization of the institution into three separate parts: a Heilanstalt (which by 1860 housed 270 patients) and two Pflegeanstalten (which had a total of 490 patients in 1860). In 1864, an agricultural colony in the village of Einum opened as a satellite of the asylum. By 1880, Hildesheim asylum accommodated 745 patients in total.