The Monument to the Battle of the Nations in Leipzig (Völkerschlachtdenkmal) is one of the most recognisable examples of German architecture at the turn of the 20th century. It was erected to commemorate the centenary of the battle fought in 1813, in which the armies of Austria, Prussia, Russia and Sweden defeated Napoleon. The clash, which lasted from 16 to 19 October, was the largest and bloodiest in the history of Europe before the First World War.
Monument to the Battle of the Nations in Leipzig – origins of its creation
The idea to erect a monument commemorating the German participants in the battle came from the architect Clemens Thieme. In 1894, he founded a patriotic association to raise funds for the project. Just one year later, the organisation had 45,000 members, and in 1896 an architectural competition was announced. Wilhelm Kreis was the winner, but ultimately Thieme entrusted the design to Brun Schmitz, known for his national monuments. Thieme himself directed the construction and took an active part in the work.
The foundation stone for the monument was laid on 18 October 1898. To supplement the funding, a nationwide lottery was organised in 1903. At the time of the inauguration, the association already had more than 90,000 members. The opening ceremony took place exactly one hundred years after the battle, on 18 October 1913. At the same time, a Russian memorial church was erected nearby, dedicated to fallen Russian soldiers.
Architecture and symbolism of the Völkerschlachtdenkmal
The monument was built in the centre of the former battlefield, at the site of the heaviest fighting. It is the largest and tallest of its kind in Europe. It is distinguished by its monumental form and Art Nouveau sculptural decoration. The author of the figures was Christian Behrens, and after his death the work was continued by Franz Metzner. Inside the building, there is a crypt with a group of sculptures of the “Guardians of the Dead”, set in front of the “Masks of Destiny”. The entire building is maintained in a spirit of pathos and symbolism, typical of the German ‘Colossal Style’.
The eastern facade bears the inscription ‘Gott mit uns’ (God with us), the former motto of the German army. The height of the monument is 91 metres, the inner dome is 68 metres, and at the base the building reaches 126 metres wide. For its erection, 26,500 blocks of granite porphyry from Beucha and 120,000 tonnes of concrete were used. The total cost of construction was six million marks in gold.
Monument to the Battle of the Nations in Leipzig – fate
The monument survived the Second World War and the GDR period, even though many other German structures of its kind were destroyed after 1945. The Communist authorities left it standing because of its symbolic references to the German-Russian brotherhood of arms. Over the years, however, the building has deteriorated considerably due to lack of maintenance. In 2003, an extensive €30 million restoration began. Work on the tower was completed on 18 October 2013, the centenary of its inauguration. The surrounding park was also restored.
The Denkmalchor, a choir of 40 singers, is associated with the Völkerschlachtdenkmal and regularly performs a cappella concerts and organ recitals inside it. The monument is renowned for its exceptional acoustics, allowing for ten-second reverberations. Its crypt also hosts concerts of gothic and dark wave music as part of Leipzig’s annual Wave-Gotik-Treffen festival.
Source: saxony.co.uk, stiftung-voelkerschlachtdenkmal-leipzig.de
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