Friedrichsruh is a district in the municipality of Aumühle, Herzogtum Lauenburg district, Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany. Friedrichsruh manor is known as a residence of the princely House of Bismarck, mainly of Chancellor Otto von Bismarck from 1871 onwards.

History

In the 18th century, the extended Sachsenwald forest in Saxe-Lauenburg east of Hamburg was a favoured hunting ground for Count Frederick of Lippe-Biesterfeld (1706–1781). In 1763 he had a lodge erected in the woods, named Friedrichsruh ("Frederick's Rest"), which upon his death changed hands several times. In the early 19th century, the premises were rebuilt as a country inn and guesthouse, which after the opening of the Hamburg-Berlin railway line running nearby became a popular destination for Hamburg citizens. After the victory over France and the German unification of 1871, Chancellor Otto von Bismarck received the Sachsenwald estates as a present from Emperor William I. Bismarck had the former inn restored as a manor house and retained the name of Friedrichsruh. After his death he was entombed in the Bismarck Mausoleum on the Schneckenberg hill, just outside Friedrichsruh, on 16 March 1899.