Einstein's visit at Büdingen

It was a quiet and rainy Sunday morning, probably the 25^th May 1952 when Mrs Dr. Dagmar Reimers, the head of the library who was on duty this day at the castle museum. Suddenly she was called by the castle guards: two men are there and want a guided tour through the museum in English. According to the notes of Mrs Reimers which she wrote down in 1980 one of the older men – with an inconspicuous suit and precise cut hair – got really lively when he saw an old American typewriter from the year 1886 and reported that he has written on such an object. Also he was interested in the ethnic physical equipment in the so called alchemist kitchen. The visitors were taken with the tour and seemed to be in a good mood after Mrs Reimers suggested having diner at the “Stern”.

The chauffeur of the guests has told the castle guards while waiting that this is the famous physicist and his Swiss friend – but Einstein set a high value on incognito. When Baron Otto Friedrich to Ysenburg found out some time later he sent a driver to the “Stern” to pick them both men up and bring them back to the castle. But he didn’t come across them at the restaurant anymore. A local newspaper had a short reported about this two days later. Mrs Dr. Reimers was called by the German Press Agency who said her she might not plant rumours. This again rankled the head of the castle museum Dr. Karl Dielmann who wrote a polite letter to Mr Prof. Dr. Albert Einstein on the 5^th July 1952 which said:

Dear Mr Professor! As head of the baronial castle museum of Büdingen I regret not attending the castle when you visited the medieval Büdingen at that Sunday. All the same I am convinced that my colleague Mrs Dr. Reimers the head of the barional Ysenburger and Büdinger castle library gave you lasting impressions of “Schloss Büdingen” and its art treasures. For deeping of these impressions I allow myself to hand you the in the meantime published guide of “Schloss Büdingen” – a castle guide written by Dielmann. With best regards! …”.

The answer wasn’t a long time coming:

Dear Mr Dr. Dielmann: Your polite letter and your elegant writing reminded me of my visit at your idyll. A piece of Middle Ages at its very best”. Thank you a lot for your kindness. Yours faithfully (signed personally: A. Einstein) Albert Einstein.

Obviously, Albert Einstein spent a pleasent day at Büdingen. The written certificate of this is his original letter which is to this day in the documents of the Castle Museum.