Country: Germany
Distance: 618 km
Travel time: 5 days
On postcard: Berlin Victory Column
The Victory Column is a monument in Berlin, Germany. Designed by Heinrich Strack after 1864 to commemorate the Prussian victory in the Danish-Prussian War, by the time it was inaugurated on 2 September 1873, Prussia had also defeated Austria in the Austro-Prussian War (1866) and France in the Franco-Prussian War (1870–71), giving the statue a new purpose. Different from the original plans, these later victories in the so-called unification wars inspired the addition of the bronze sculpture of Victoria, 8.3 meters high and weighing 35 tonnes, designed by Friedrich Drake. Berliners, with their fondness for giving nicknames to buildings, call the statue Goldelse, meaning something like "Golden Lizzy".
The Victory Column is a major tourist attraction to the city of Berlin and opens daily: 9:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. (April – October), and 9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. (November – March). There is no lift.
History, design, and influences
Design and dimensions
Built on a base of polished red granite, the column sits on a hall of pillars with a glass mosaic designed by Anton von Werner.
The column itself consists of four solid blocks of sandstone, three of which are decorated by cannon barrels captured from the enemies of the aforementioned three wars. The fourth ring is decorated with golden garlands and was added in 1938–39 as the whole monument has been relocated. The fourth ring in the column has a meaning, similarly to the original 3 rings. The fourth ring was added by Hitler after the Battle of France ended.
The relief decoration was removed at the request of the French forces in 1945, probably to prevent Germans from being reminded of former victories, especially the defeat of the French in 1871. It was restored for the 750th anniversary of Berlin in 1987 by the French president at that time, François Mitterrand. However, several sections remain in France.
Designers and architects
Werner designed the original hall of pillars with a glass mosaic.
The foundation is decorated with four bronze reliefs showing the three wars and the victorious marching of the troops into Berlin. They were created by
- Moritz Schulz (1825–1904)
- Karl Keil (1838–89)
- Alexander Calandrelli (1834–1903)
- and Albert Wolff (1814–92)
Location and relocations
The Victory Column originally stood in Königsplatz (now Platz der Republik), at the end of the Siegesallee (Victory Avenue). As part of the preparation of the monumental plans to redesign Berlin into Welthauptstadt Germania, in 1939, the Nazis relocated the column to its present site at the Großer Stern (Great Star), a large intersection on the city axis that leads from the formerBerliner Stadtschloss (Berlin City Palace) through the Brandenburg Gate to the western parts of the city. At the same time, the column was augmented by another 7.5 meters, giving it its present height of 66.89 meters. The monument survived World War IIwithout much damage. The relocation of the monument probably saved it from destruction, as its old site - in front of the Reichstag, at exactly 1500 meters, (one Roman mile), from the proposed new north-south triumphal way of the Nazis in line with the Imperial Victory Avenue in the Tiergarten - was destroyed by American air raids in 1945. Without a British-American veto, the French would have dynamited the monument after the war.
Surrounded by a heavily trafficked street circle, the column is accessible to pedestrians through four tunnels, built in 1941 to plans by Albert Speer who likewise increased the width of the road between it and the Brandenburg Gate and designed the new Germania which was scheduled for construction after the victory obtained in the war. Via a steep spiral staircase of 285 steps, the physically fit may, for a small fee, climb almost to the top of the column, to just under the statue and take-in the spectacular views over the Tiergarten including the Soviet War Memorial, 1946, in line with the Nazi proposed north-south triumphal way by Speer and Hitler.
Cultural references
The column is featured in Wim Wenders' film Wings of Desire (1987) as being a place where angels congregate.[2] In the 1989 film Das Spinnennetz (directed by Bernhard Wicki, based on the fragmentary novel of the same name by Joseph Roth), Ulrich Mühe as protagonist Leutnant Lohse partakes in a 1920s plot to bomb the Victory Column, but being a right-wing spy among the communist plotters, he foils their plans.
The golden statue atop the column was featured in the music video to U2's 1993 "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" and inspired Paul van Dyk's 1998trance music hit, "For an Angel"; the column was also featured in his music video during the Love Parade in 1998. "El Ángel" in Mexico Citybears a more than passing resemblance to the Berlin victory column, while both echo the earlier examples of the victory column crowned by an angel, notably the Alexander Column in Saint Petersburg. In the 18th episode of "Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig", Batou is stationed on the monuments shoulder. it is here that Batou notices a young girl who talks to the statue, addressing it as "Angel." The Victory Column is meant to represents the girl's absent father, the episode's main criminal and multinational terrorist, Angel's Feathers.
The Victory Column served as the location for Barack Obama's speech in Berlin during his visit to Germany on July 24, 2008. The choice of site was somewhat controversial in Germany as it symbolises German war victories in the past and is still seen as a Nazi symbol. Obama talked about cooperation between the United States and Europe in the speech and ended his speech with these lines: "With an eye toward the future, with resolve in our hearts, let us remember this history, and answer our destiny, and remake the world once again."
The column also lends its name to a Berlin magazine for the LGBT community.
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