08/22/2014

To the article on the website of Triodos Bank

Once again, we are introducing one of Triodos Bank's borrowers in our newsletter. This time, Michalis Pantelouris visited Landgut Stober in the beautiful Havelland region near Berlin. He spoke with Michael Stober, who has breathed new life into this long-forgotten place with its rich history. Landgut Stober also features alongside other borrowers in Triodos Bank's new international corporate film, which is presented in this newsletter.

The magic of the place. Looking back, Michael Stober can trace the beginnings of his ambitious project at Landgut Stober to a single moment. When he decided to buy this extraordinary property, he knew very little about its remarkable history, its spirit or its potential. "I stood here and felt it," he says simply. Today, visitors can experience that same feeling. But it is easier to recognise now, because Michael Stober has already accomplished something remarkable.

The estate was in ruins when he took it over. It had been declared beyond restoration and was little more than a plot of land covered in rubble and rubbish that local residents had dumped in the empty buildings over many years, perhaps even decades. Today, on the picturesque shores of Lake Groß Behnitz in the Havelland region, there is a small hotel, a restaurant and spaces for weddings, conferences and workshops. The estate is also home to a fascinating chapter of German history, as the Borsig name is associated with pioneering ideas and developments that helped shape the country.

August Borsig was a 19th-century industrialist, founder of the Borsig engineering works and a pioneer of railway development. At one point, his factories produced a substantial proportion of the locomotives built in Prussia. He was also a pioneer in social welfare. His company introduced an early workplace social insurance scheme and provided a swimming pool for employees to help address the poor sanitary conditions in Berlin's working-class neighbourhoods. Borsig brought the same pioneering and inventive spirit that had driven the success of his engineering works to agriculture. After purchasing an estate in the Havelland region from an impoverished nobleman, he set about modernising agricultural practices at the property in Groß Behnitz, directly on the shores of the lake.

“You could say I had a vision”

"Down here," says Michael Stober, pointing into the gaping hole that was once the cellar, "is Germany's first fully automatic potato steaming machine." It is a collection of rollers, chains, conveyor scoops, troughs and vats, rusted, damaged and half-buried in the ground. A remarkable feat of engineering in its day, now left to decay. One can imagine what the entire estate must have looked like when Stober first arrived in 2000, originally searching for a home for himself. "A friend told me this estate was for sale," he recalls, "and like a fool, I went to see it." Trees were growing through the roofs of the buildings. But Stober, who had considerable experience in property renovation as a building contractor – "a few thousand units" – could see something that nobody else thought possible. "You could say I had a vision," he says today, "and unlike Helmut Schmidt, I don't believe that people with visions should see a doctor." He began turning that vision into reality.

It took some time for the concept to take shape, as it was clear that Landgut Stober was not suitable as a family home. "I was looking for a way to develop the property that would engage the public, a viable long-term business activity serving a cultural purpose." And the cultural heritage established by August Borsig and later his sons could hardly have been more diverse. Engineering, agriculture and biology – all the Borsigs were dendrologists, studying trees beyond their commercial value – were combined with social and civic engagement. This tradition extended to the Kreisau Circle, the group that opposed the Nazi regime, associated with Helmuth James von Moltke and connected to the wider German resistance, including those involved in the attempted assassination of Hitler on 20 July 1944. The members of the Kreisau Circle developed ideas for Germany after what they believed would be the inevitable collapse of the Third Reich. They discussed their agricultural proposals here, with Dr Ernst von Borsig Jr, whose family had meanwhile been ennobled. He was a great-grandson of August Borsig and the third and last of August Borsig's descendants to own the estate. In a tragic irony of history, Dr Ernst von Borsig Jr, who had opposed the Nazis, died from an infection in a Soviet internment camp after the war, before his family could establish that he had been an opponent of the Nazi regime. His death also marked the beginning of the estate's decline.

Progress and Resistance United in One Place

Technological progress had always been a cornerstone of the Borsig family's thinking. This was evident not only in the locomotives produced by the Borsig works and their engineering achievements in bridge construction, but also in agricultural innovations at the estate. Motorway bridges resting on rollers, allowing their structures to expand and contract with changes in temperature, were based on a Borsig design. At the estate, a system of pipes used gases from cattle manure to regulate conditions in the cowshed. Steam engines were employed to cultivate the fields, while the distillery, for which the potato steaming machine had been developed, operated largely automatically. Not only were the potatoes steamed automatically, but the residue was also transported along conveyor chains directly to the pigsty for use as animal feed. These achievements are impressive in themselves. Yet the broader picture only becomes clear when reading the writings of the Kreisau Circle, which reveal that Ernst von Borsig Jr was far more than a gifted engineer. For him, people were at the heart of agricultural activity. Rather than focusing on technology, his writings explored the role and responsibilities of farmers within society, their village communities and the wider world. Even in Germany's history, with its many influential and socially committed entrepreneurs, he deserves a special place.

During the GDR era, the A. Borsig estate became an LPG, an agricultural production cooperative. Later, individual buildings continued to be used, including as a nursery. But, as in many parts of the Havelland region, more people were leaving the area than were being born there. What could be done with such a large property in a region like this? Who could bring it back to life? "I think it came along at exactly the right moment for me," says Michael Stober. Then, with a slight grin, he adds: "The pull of age makes you want to do things that have a deeper meaning." At 52, he is hardly old, but he already has an entire career as a building contractor behind him. The energy with which he drives the project forward – always approachable and aware of even the smallest details – suggests that his previous business career was equally demanding. He gives the impression of someone who simply does not do things by halves.

The Spirit of the Borsig Family

The rooms intended for workshops at Landgut Stober are almost ready. They will soon become a central part of life at the estate. Visitors will be able to try pottery or discover how the 24-tonne steam engine donated to Stober by the Borsig works operates. Other activities will include distilling spirits, printing, cooking, painting and baking. If one were to sum it up in a single sentence, one might say that Michael Stober is creating a place where people can learn through practical experience. Learning by doing, touching and trying things for themselves. Of course, visitors can also simply enjoy a holiday in the beautiful countryside, staying at the wonderfully relaxed hotel housed in the former guesthouse, which is soon to be extended into the former barn. They can celebrate weddings, dine at the restaurant with its lakeside terrace, attend concerts or organise conferences for more than a thousand participants in the large hall of the former cowshed. But ultimately, the magic of the place lies in showing how much each individual can achieve when they make full use of their abilities and put their ideas into practice. It is not about becoming a Borsig ourselves, but about recognising the spirit that inspired the Borsig family – a spirit that exists within each of us. Michael Stober is no longer entirely sure how to describe his own profession. "Investor" is the term used in the brochure that Landgut Stober sends to prospective visitors or hands out to guests. He himself believes that "enthusiast" would probably be more appropriate. And when Michael Stober explains his motivation for the project, his words almost sound like a guiding principle for what visitors can experience and take away from the estate: "If I don't do it, nobody will."