The Berlin Victory Column
Wednesday, 28 May 2014 - 01:00 pm (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination: European Union / Europäische Union Category/Kategorie: General , Berlin
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© Manfred Brückels
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The Victory Column is a monument in
Berlin . 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 metres 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 .
Berlin Victory Column during Festival of Lights © Times/cc-by-sa-2.5
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, inspired to Heinrich Strack by the “torre faro” of
Rodolfo Vantini , consists of four solid blocks of sandstone, three of which are decorated by cannon barrels captured from the enemies of the aforementioned three wars. A fourth ring is decorated with golden garlands and was added in 1938–39 as the whole monument has been relocated. The entire column, including the sculpture, is 67 meters tall.
The Victory Column is a major tourist attraction in 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).
Read more on
berlin.de – Victory Column and
Wikipedia Victory Column (
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