Reduit

Reduit, also known as Reduit-Kaserne, stands in Wiesbaden as a former military structure within the Mainz Federal Fortress. Its walls face the landward side of Kastel. Built in the nineteenth century, the fortified barracks served a bridgehead near the Rhine and the former Taunus Railway. Crenellated walls mark the building’s strong defensive character. The two-storey building has a slightly bastioned front, with long faces meeting at an obtuse angle. Its foundation rests on a grid of oak piles. A detached caponier sits beyond an enclosed courtyard and connects with the barracks through a freestanding crenellated wall. These elements give the structure the outline of a slightly irregular lunette. Prussian and Austrian soldiers once garrisoned the Reduit during the German Confederation, and a Nassau infantry regiment later occupied it. The Museum Castellum occupies part of the building. Local clubs and a youth centre also use the site, while the inner courtyard hosts open-air concerts and cinema screenings during summer. The site joins fortress history with cultural activity in Wiesbaden.