Sichtbar und sicher: Wohnhöfe des Adels in Münster in der ersten Hälfte des 18. Jahrhunderts

A family’s safest abode is their home. However, danger lurks on the street outside. What did an open front door signify during the early modern period? Was it an invitation to come in? Or did one trust the authorities to such an extent that one did not have to fear the dangers lurking beyond one’s own four walls during the daytime? What did it signify if members of the aristocracy, who were allowed to carry weapons, started erecting open fences around their newly built homes rather than hiding them behind walls? Did they want to demonstrate the magnificence of the architecture or evoke trust? Who was allowed to look into their windows and who was allowed to look out? Using the example of the nobility in Münster, this book addresses these questions. It is the first to examine systematic trends in making the architecture of aristocratic homes in Europe more visible and to study their connection to private and public security.