INAUGURATION OF THE WALHALLA.

New Zealand Colonist and Port Nicholson Advertiser, Volume I, Issue 79, 2 May 1843, Page 4

INAUGURATION OF THE WALHALLA.

Illustrated London News. Munich, Oct. 19. —The 18th of October, the anniversary of the battle of Leipsic, has long been held as a national holiday in all Germany, but, during the twenty-nine years that have elapsed since that memorable day, it may be doubted whether it has ever been more worthily celebrated than yesterday, when the Walhalla; the German temple, was solemnly opened in presence of the King of Bavaria.

The weather could not have been more favourable, and this was rendered doubly agreeable after the fears that had prevailed during the morning, in consequence of some heavy mists and threatening clouds that seemed to announce anything but the delightful day that smiled on our solemnity. The chief feature of the spectacle consisted in the royal procession from Ratisbon to the little town of Donaustauf, situated at the immediate foot of the Walhallahill. At the foot of the hill the King. was. received, and conducted in triumph up to the temple. In the vestibule of the temple his Majesty was received by the Regierungs President of the Upper Palatinate, who delivered an harangue on the occasion, to which the King made a suitable reply, and then the gates of the temple were thrown open. The King and all those who had formed a part of the royal procession then entered, and examined the noble building. In the evening the Walhalla was illuminated without and within.

The different roads leading along the Danube from Ratisbon to Donaustauf were crowded at an early hour in the morning by those who were hurrying to the scene of the solemnity. Till noon the weather continued to look extremely threatening, but suddenly the mists were dispersed, the sun broke forth in all his brightness, and .the Walhalla on her mountain became visible to the pilgrims that were hastening to her shrine. Four standards were seen fluttering from the old Staufburg; they bore the arms of Bavaria, Prussia, Thurn, and Taxis, and the city of Ratisbon.

A succession of triumphal arches had been erected along the whole road, two leagues in length, from the bridge of the Danube to the gate of tfre Stauf. At the last arch but one, which stood on.the boundary between the district (Gerichtsbezirk) of Ratisbon and that of Worder, the magistrates of the latter had assembled to welcome the King. At the last arch the clergy stood drawn up for the same purpose.

All the houses of the little town of Donaustauf were decorated in the most festive manner. All the avenues to the Walhalla were guarded by parties of Landwehr (militia), to keep off the crowds that came pressing from all sides, and many, who were not perhaps entitled to enjoy such a favour, contrived to pass the cordon of sentinels by representing themselves as belonging to the chorus singers who were to assemble within the hall.. Some hundreds obtained admission in this way, and participated in the enjoyment of thofee who were gazing out ; from the terraces of the Walhalla upon the magnificent landscape below, thronged as it l was' with thousands of eager and expectant spectators. -

A discharge of artillery announced the departure jdf the King from Ratisbon, and almost immediately afterwards the line of carriages' belonging to the royal procession became visi- : ble. I hastened down, that I might be a witness of the reception of the royal founder of the'temple. At the foot of the hill stood two young ladies, blad in white, with, eabh a gaily-coloured mantle, her - tresses floating; freely in the breeze, and a .banner grasped in her hand. These young ladies .were intended

;to represent .the states that compose the German Confederation, and their maritles: and! banners bore the arms and colours of the 1 several states. At their head stood another yqupg lady, with a golden wreath upon her heatl,as a representative of Germania;. She it was who now moved forward to recite a poem to the King, who, meanvyhile, had left his car.riage and was advancing up the mountain, Another of the young ladies stepped forward to present the King with a garland of oakleaves, while the remainder,'of the fair party lowered their banners in token of to the. true-hearted German Prince, the hero of the day. > Farther up the hill, and at the foot of the first flight of the steps, another party of young ladies, likewise clad -in white, received the King, one of them stepping forward to thank him, in the name of Bavaria and the city of Ratisbon, for having chosen; that spot as the site of the German temple. His Majesty now prepared to ascend the steps. • A.t thismoment a chorus of 200 voices, accompanied by wind instruments,and.Jed by the distinguished composer himself, broke forth into the Walhalla song; and, while the four verses were singing, the procession had sufficient time to ascend to the uppermost terrace. The King led the Princess William of Prussia, Prince William of Prussia led the Queen, the Crown Prince led his young consort, to whom he had only a few days before been united; then followed the other members of the royal family, and the rest of the royal party. Under the portico the procession paused awhile to listen to the eloquent discourse of the Baron zu Rhein (the Regierungs president), who in the name of Germany, thanked the King for the task he had so gloriously achieved, and at the same time alluded in the happiest manner to a recent festival, that bore no little* affinity to the one in which they were then engaged—namely, the festivity in honour of the cathedral of Cologne; in both, the orator trusted, they beheld- pledges for the strengthening unity and well-being of Germany. The King’s reply 1 was, “ May Walhalla promote the strengthening and the increase of genuine German sentiments! May all Germans, of whatever tribe they be, ever feel that they have 1 one common country, a country of which they have cause to be proud; and may each contribute what he can to its glory ?” When the King had pronounced these words he grasped the golden key of the temple, and, as he touched with it the gate, the ponderous portals flew open, and presented to our astonished view the interior-Of the sanctuary, resplendent with bronze and marble, with its colossal caryatides, its golden inscriptions, and its white, ghostlike row 9 offbusts ahd statues. The King and Queen, followed by their suite, entered the Pronaos. Again the royal founder of the Walhalla exclaimed, “ May the thought of this newly-opened sanctuary promote the strengthening and the increase of genuine German sentiments!” The chorus singers had meanwhile ascended to the gallery of the Naos, and now broke forth into the Song of the Bards, also composed by Stunz. The King, who immediately on entering. the temple had called Von Klenze, the architect, to his side, conversed with him while the choral harmony was performed, and pointed .out to his illustrious guests the details of the building, aDd explained the signification of some of the busts, &c. ; The sun had nearly set when the royal party quitted the temple to return to Ratisbon, and when they reached the foot of the mountain the evening had already sufficiently advanced to allow the. illumination of the building to commence. The illumination was effected by Bengal lights, and these were successively of three different colours—white, scarlet, and whitish blue. Nothing can surpass the magnificence of the appearance of the noble building when its colossal forms were made visible by these lights. Oct. 21. — At ten o’clock yesterday evening the King and the royal family returned, here from Ratisbon. On the 19th, the day after the inauguration of the Walhalla, the King laid the first stpne of the Hall of Liberation, at Keilheim, on which occasion he expressed himself in the following words: —“ Let us never forget what preceded the war of Liberation, what brought us into a situation to malce that war nepessary, nor what it was that gave us the victory. Let us never forget, let us ever honour, the heroes of that war ! Let us never sink back into disunion ! .Germany qnited will never be conquered !” At the banquet given by the King on the same day, at Keilheim, his Majesty proposed the following toasts: —“ To our common fatherland, second .to no other! It begins to feel itself, and will never again let itself be oppressed by the stranger! Deutschland \Hoch To the heroes of the War of Liberation! In -this' we' drink ’to the health of Prince William, of Prussia, and, to that of Prince Charles of .Bavaria, my brother. To the health of all here and all absent!’’—“To the health,, not only of ’the heroes of those days,but also to that of the women, who distinguished themselves then ! Above all, to the, princely German lady, the Princess William ;df Prussia!”'