I bought this postcard on ebay the other week, and ever since have been footling about on the internet trying to find out something of the buildings shown here. Marianbad, or Mariánské Lázně, is in the Czech Republic, and was a fashionable spa town in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth – frequented by Edward VII (who opened the town’s first golf course in 1905) and many of his relatives, as well as wealthy Americans.

from The Washington Post, 18 August 1907, p.11

Amongst the exuberant Rococo hotels and buildings where the health-giving waters could be taken,  there were numerous churches catering for the many visitors of different faiths. Amongst these an Anglican church was designed by William Burges and built in 1879. It was there that after the death of Edward VII a memorial was to be placed, designed by William Lethaby.

Marianske Lazne CZ Anglican church, by Jim Linwood (Anglikansky Kostel), Marianske Lazne (Marienbad), Czech Republic. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 

It is rather small. But recognisably British, and Burges. I haven’t discovered whether or not the memorial was made and is there. The church was founded by Lady Anna Scott in memory of her husband who died at Marinaded in 1867. The church is now a concert hall.

After the Second World War most of the native German inhabitants were forced to leave, under the terms of the Potsdam agreement. After 1989 many of the buildings were restored and it has once again become a popular tourist destination.  In its heyday it was visited by Goethe, Chopin, Wagner, and Thomas Edison, as well as Prince Friedrich of Saxony, Czar Nicholas II and Emperor Franz Joseph I.

The postcard identifies the buildings as the Sanatorium Kavkaz, (or Maison Balneaire) and seems to date from the 1950s or 60s. More research is required to find out about the architects, and landscape designers (the landscaping was an important aspect of the town) who worked here. Any information would be most gratefully received.