On 18 January 1871, in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles, the Prussian King Wilhelm I was proclaimed Kaiser (Emperor) by the German princes. This marked the culmination of the Franco-Prussian War and the formal unification of the North German Confederation with the southern German states, forming the first German nation state. Established as a constitutional monarchy, it consisted of a democratically-elected parliament called the Reichstag, with key decisions to be made by the Emperor.
The Victory Column of Berlin, or Siegessäule, “was the first national monument erected in the newly founded empire in its new capital city and sparked off a number of other monument initiatives.” The uniqueness of this monument comes from its changing purpose – from marking and commemorating early military victories, to surviving the effects of the Second World War, and undergoing a transformation into a symbol of a modern city. The column was originally built to commemorate Prussia's victories in the wars leading to the unification of Germany, specifically the Danish-Prussian War (1864), the Austro-Prussian War (1866), and the Franco-Prussian War (1870-71). With “its purpose to glorify most recent history,” the Victory Column was solemnly inaugurated on 2 September 1873, the date of the third anniversary commemorating the victorious ‘Battle of Sedan’ against the French. This battle resulted XXX the capture of Emperor Napoleon III and over a hundred thousand troops. 
The style of the monument’s architecture reflects the feeling during the Gründerjahre period (‘founders' years’). Unique with its unusual proportions and sheer size, the column was designed to compete with other similar prominent memorials erected in Europe’s capital cities, such as Napoléon’s ‘Colonne de la Grande Armée’ (1810) in Paris or Nelson’s Column (1843) in London. The inauguration took place at what was then known as Königsplatz, the historic name for the square directly in front of the Reichstag building (Renamed Platz der Republik in 1948). Berlin’s Victory Column was originally located at the Northern end of Siegerallee, or Victory Alley, a grand promenade commissioned by Kaiser Wilhelm II. The column was moved six decades later by the Nazi regime in 1938–1939 as part of Hitler's plans to redevelop Berlin as ‘Welthauptstadt Germania’ (world capital Germania). The Siegessäule was disassembled and moved to Grosser Stern, the centre of Tiergarten. This relocation proved to be a fortunate one as the column survived the Second World War largely intact, while its original site was heavily bombed. Without the move, it would likely have been destroyed. 
The column was designed by German architect Johann Heinrich Strack (6 July 1805 – 13 June 1880), who had been working on its sketches since 1864. The column proper, made of sandstone is finished off with a frieze of eagles. The first three segments of the column are adorned with 60 gold-painted guns captured from Denmark, Austria, and France after the wars of German unification. The monument is crowned with an 8.3-meter (27-foot) tall, 35-ton bronze sculpture of Victoria, the Roman goddess of victory – a symbol of military triumph. The statue is often called ‘Goldelse’ (Golden Elsie) or ‘Golden Lizzy’ by Berliners. 
Four frieze relief panels, made from the metal of melted down captured cannons, are set into the architrave block of red granite. They depict the three wars of 1864, 1866 and 1870, as well as the triumphal procession into Berlin on 16 June 1871. Following the Second World War, the French occupying forces dismantled three of the four bronze relief panels depicting scenes of German victories from the pedestal in May 1945 and removed them to Paris. The French considered the Siegessäule an eye-sore as they wanted to prevent the reminders of past defeats, particularly the Franco-Prussian War. Several sections of the reliefs were damaged during the war and their removal by the French, and remain in France. Thanks to an initiative by then-French President François Mitterrand, the three bronze relief panels were returned to Germany as a gesture of reconciliation between the nations for the city's 750th anniversary in 1987. The restored reliefs were ceremonially returned from Paris and were reattached to the monument deliberately left in a fragmented state. In the photograph is part of the east wall panel which depicts the surrender of France’s capitulation documents to Wilhelm I, and the German troops marching into Paris. Above the pedestal and reliefs, a circular mosaic of glass fragments is set onto a circular hall, reminiscent of a temple. Visitors can climb the 285 steps to a viewing platform offering breathtaking views of Tiergarten and the city of Berlin.
In combination with the completed restoration works and taking on a new post-war identity as a gathering place for celebration, creativity, and urban life, “they enhance the column’s primary statement, making this war memorial of the past into a site of contemporary reflection on German history.”
On this day, 2 September 2025, we commemorate 152 years since the unveiling of the Victory Column of Berlin and 38 years since the return of the monument’s bas reliefs onto its pedestal as a symbol of reconciliation between France and Germany.