A royal asylum seeker
Stanislas Leszczynski, the expelled king of Poland
On the Rue Stanislas, an outstanding building catches the eye. It is the Stanislas Hospital, which has a remarkable historical past. It stands on the place where the courtyard of the Stürzelbronn Abbey once stood, which was destroyed along with three quarters of the town in 1677. Herr Jäger, the manager of the commandery of the Teutonic Order, acquired the farm, which he rebuilt from the ruins in the Louis Quatorze style, only to later cede it to his son-in-law, Herr De Weber.
Stanislas Leszczynski was from Zweibrücken, where he ruled the duchy for several years as duc par délégation, as a duke on behalf of King Charles XII. had reigned, came to Wissembourg, where the noble De Weber family put the newly built manorial estate at his disposal. Stanislas resided here (from 1719 to 1725) in very modest circumstances and gave the small town a touch of great European history.
Stanislas (1677 - 1766) was very educated and humanely courteous. He spoke several languages. He got along well with the citizens of Weißenburg. He spoke German with them and Latin with the canons. Apart from that he was fluent in Polish, French and Swedish.