In Treue Fest…German WWI patriotic farewell card, with the lady professing that she is Firm in Loyalty to her man....a German Flag is prominent on a diagonal...The motto, In Treue Fest, was also used to describe the alliance of Germany and Austria.....It was also the motto of the Bavarians in WWI, whose army proudly wore… Continue reading Firm in Loyalty…WWI motto for men and women
It seems out of character for a German patriot like Wagner to stage such a Germanic Opera in France....even more out of character is that he reworked the opera and added a ballet to suit his Parisian audience. Tannhäuser und der Sängerkrieg auf Wartburg Upon researching this event, I learned that Wagner was in Paris… Continue reading Does it seem odd to you that Richard Wagner premiered his 1861 reworked Tannhäuser Opera in Paris?
This is another painting that needs to be viewed large to be appreciated... Its the year 1875 and the "The Iron Rolling Mill" by Adolph Menzel was a sensation. Shortly after its introduction the painting became known as the " Modern Cyclops", as in the Greek sagas of Vulcans helpers who forged the gods' weapons. … Continue reading The first painting of a factory and working life in German art
A moment in time...one of many that the Marienburg Castle witnessed during its 742 years of existence in northern Europe, from 1274 to 2016. On this occasion in 1902, Kaiser Wilhelm II made the trip to West Prussia to participate in the consecration of Virgin Mary's Church in the Marienburg Castle. His visit also coincided… Continue reading In 1902, Kaiser Wilhelm II made a trip to the Marienburg in West Prussia
This historic map shows migration routes of Baltic Germans in 1939. This migration was voluntary, administered by the German government, in order to safely re-settle all ethnic Germans back into the Reich. Migration routes of Baltic Germans to Greater Germany (Grossdeutschland) in 1939 You may wonder...why were there so many Baltic Germans in Latvia and… Continue reading Migration routes of Baltic Germans in 1939
The Kingdom of Württemberg was a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia. Its traditional capital was Stuttgart. 1806 Württemberg The kingdom had creative inventors, among them entrepreneurs whose companies are known worldwide: Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz founded the companies that would become Mercedes-Benz...they have always had plants… Continue reading In 1806 Württemberg became a Kingdom
... the reason for this dates back to 1685 and the Great Elector and his successors. The Great Elector followed a policy of religious freedom and after French King Louis XIV's revocation of the Edict of Nantes, Frederick William encouraged skilled French and Walloon Huguenots to emigrate to Brandenburg-Prussia. His Edict of Potsdam welcomed the… Continue reading If you have ever wondered why some of Germany’s war heroes in WWI and WWII have French names…
Before WWI they were on top of the world. The North German Lloyd company was founded in Bremen in 1857 and developed into one of the two most important German shipping companies of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Operating out of Bremen, it became the primary means of transporting German emigrants to America, and also was instrumental in… Continue reading Looking at the history of this company, I am amazed at its resilience
“August der Starke” (Augustus the Strong) was an unusual man, not only because of his fabled strength, but most interesting to me is that he was a German Duke of Saxony who simultaneously also ruled as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania. He inherited his German dukedom by birthright, but his rule over… Continue reading A German Duke of Saxony simultaneously also ruled as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania
Twenty year old Frederick William Hohenzollern became Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia in 1640 and reigned for 48 years until his death in 1688. Historians refer to him as "the Great Elector" (der Große Kurfürst) because of his military and political prowess which set the groundwork for Brandenburg and Prussia to merge and… Continue reading Pundits began to describe Prussia not as country with a great army, but a great army with a country.
