The history of our rose collection began in Sangerhausen towards the end of the 19th century.
Many new varieties were created during this time. Many well-established varieties disappeared, some were sold again under a different name. Serious breeders and rose enthusiasts wanted to counter this deplorable state of affairs by founding an association rosarium.
In 1903, the Rosarium Sangerhausen was opened on the occasion of a German Rose Congress. At that time, 2,000 different roses were already growing here. Through the mediation of the rose breeder Peter Lambert, many historical varieties from all over the world were brought to the Rosarium.
The park got its special flair from the constantly growing collection of climbing roses. There was not enough space to accommodate them completely on arches and trellises, so the varieties began to be cultivated on columns and pyramids.
The Sangerhausen Beautification Society with Professor Ewald Gnau and Albert Hoffmann at the helm paved the way for this development. In 1902, the rose gardener Richard Vogel was hired for the increasing gardening work.
The economic situation in the 1920s made it very difficult to finance the normal operation of the Rosarium. Thanks to the unusual organisational talent of Ewald Gnaus, the Rosarium survived the Great Depression. His initiative is also credited with the creation of a rose library, the first testing centre for rose novelties, the advisory centre for garden lovers and the Central Office for Rose Research. From 1922 to 1933 he was editor of the "Rosen-Zeitung" and managing director of the Verein Deutscher Rosenfreunde. In 1933, he resigned from his position as managing director of the Verein Deutscher Rosenfreunde in protest against the National Socialist Gleichschaltungsgesetz.
After the Second World War, the city of Sangerhausen took over the administration of the Rosarium. From 1955 onwards, it developed the site as a cultural centre for the Mansfeld mining region.
The division of Germany cut the Verein Deutscher Rosenfreunde off from the Rosarium. Thanks to well-functioning private contacts, it was nevertheless possible to preserve and enormously expand the collection. After reunification, the Rosarium regained its all-German significance and was given the title "EUROPA-ROSARIUM" in 1993.
The Rosenstadt Sangerhausen GmbH was founded in 2003 to market the Europa-Rosarium to tourists. The previous visitor record was set in 2009 with 132,500 visitors to the "Sangerhausen Rose Miracle".
