Friedensfest 1871 Denkmal

Friedensfest 1871 Denkmal. . , The Peace of Frankfurt in 1871 ended the Franco-Prussian war which was the last major European conflict of the 19th century. King Wilhelm I of Prussia (1797-1888) led the numerous German states to victory and, as Kaiser Wilhelm I, united them into one powerful nation. The resulting balance of power within Europe helped ensure peace among the major nations for more than forty years. The coming of the peace treaty signalled celebrations -Friedensfest- on May 2, 1871 in the newly incorporated town of Berlin, Ontario. The mainly Germanic population of 2,700 welcomed ten thousand visitors for parades, speeches, dancing, mass choir-singing and fireworks., Twenty-five years later, many of the original friedensfest revellers gathered again in Berlin to relive the celebration. From this 1896 reunion came a public fund-raising campaign to erect a memorial -denkmal- to honour the 1871 Friedensfest., On August 13, 1897 a ten foot granite monument, topped with a four foot bronze bust of Kaiser Wilhelm I was unveiled with great ceremony. The project was organized by the town's Germanic community and was supported by most other citizens. The bust was pulled down on august 23, 1914, three weeks after the outbreak of World War I. It was recovered from Victoria Lake, put into storage and disappeared mysteriously 18 months later. The Park Board ordered the granite monument broken up on March 1, 1916., This new monument honours the history of our city. May it serve in the spirit of the original memorial as we seek peace for all people for all time.