
The Technische Universität Darmstadt (TH Darmstadt) was founded in 1877, with its Architecture Department being established at the same time, although it is possible to trace its origins back to earlier 19thC building schools and educational institutions within the city. Today the Architecture Department is housed on the Lichtwiese campus in a building constructed as a model for the 'Darmstadt Building System.' In 1968, the year after the building's foundation was laid plans were made for the creation of the Instituts (Arbeitsgruppe) für Tropisches Bauen, an institute with early connections to the Architectural Association's Department of Development and Tropical Studies, in London.