Statesman who unified Germany, Otto von Bismarck (1815 - 1898), ‘Iron Chancellor’ of the German Empire. Controversial 1931 colossal red sandstone statue by far-right sculptor Fritz Behn (1878 - 1970) on the Bosch Bridge across the Isar River in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. The statue portrays Bismarck as an heroic guardian, his right hand on his sword hilt and his left hand clasping a scroll of the imperial constitution.
Munich, Bavaria, Germany: this huge statue of Otto von Bismarck, European statesman and ‘Iron Chancellor’ of Germany, has been mired in controversy ever since its 1931 unveiling. The Bismarck Monument’s donor, right-wing industrialist Paul Reusch, commissioned it as a foundation gift for the nearby Deutsches Museum. The gift became a political issue when museum founder Oskar von Miller refused it, declaring that his natural science foundation must remain apolitical. Instead, it was unveiled outside the museum, without any celebration, on 11 September 1931. The act drew sharp criticism and the statue’s ultra-conservative creator, sculptor Fritz Behn (1878 - 1970), provoked further anger on 12 September when he laid a laurel wreath on it with a mourning ribbon and the inscription ‘In Mourning, In Shame’. In 1934, the statue was moved to its present site on the Bosch Bridge, across the Isar river but within sight of the museum. Fritz Behn, best known for animal sculptures, was a staunch National Socialist (Nazi) sympathizer. In his youth he backed colonial rule, believed in white supremacy and opposed equality for indigenous people in Germany’s African colonies. He argued against racially mixed marriage and later admired Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. Bismarck (1815 - 1898), Prime Minister of Prussia for 28 years, used the Franco-Prussian War to engineer German unification. From 1871 to 1890, he served as first Chancellor of the German Empire. Behn’s red sandstone statue portrays him as an heroic guardian, his right hand on his sword hilt and his left hand clasping a scroll of the imperial constitution. The Bismarck statue is still controversial. It has often been daubed with graffiti and in 2020, it was damaged during Black Lives Matter protests.
Size: 2687px × 3993px
Location: Munich, Bavaria, Germany
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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