Owners

Because the building was mostly used for commercial purposes it was severely disfigured until recent times by restructuring and additions; these distortions have been largely eliminated in the latest restoration. We find the house in which Handel was born first recorded in 1558 as a “ municipal leasehold”, the owner being named as Christoph Nopel (from 1571), the lawyer Dr. Johann Neigenfindt (from 1595) and the ducal chamberlain Hans Georg Bley (from about 1630). On 30 June 1666 the ducal chamberlain and surgeon, Georg Händel, bought it for 1310 guilders from his widow, Susanne Bley, who had lived in the stately building “Zum gelben Hirsch” (The Yellow Stag) since 1654.