‘Imperishable symbol’ of U.S.-German friendship?

On this day in 1932: At Asheville’s Riverside Cemetery, F.W. Von Prittwitz, German ambassador to the United States, dedicates a monument to 18 German sailors who died of typhoid while imprisoned nearby during World War I.

“Germany is happy to find herself in the same line with the United States when she advocates disarmament. . . . ” Von Prittwitz tells the crowd of several thousand. “May this monument stand as an imperishable symbol of the friendship between our two peoples and a mark of our determination to maintain it for all future to come.”

In less than a decade, however, Germans and Americans will again be at war.

One thought on “‘Imperishable symbol’ of U.S.-German friendship?”

  1. Interesting consideration. I did not know about this monument and its writing, which gives an idea of the fragility of the relationships among different countries.

    I think that this post is notably consistent with the time we are living in, as the relationships between Germany and the States do not seem to be excellent. While after the end of the Cold War Germany was a certainty for the States, now there seems to be something dividing the two countries. You only need to consider some recent events to have an idea of that: during the G20 in Seoul Angela Merkel criticized the American economic plans, while in Lisbon Germany promoted nuclear disarmament, while for the States this is not possible at the moment.

    If you want to read more about this (and you are Italian speakers), I think that this article can be very interesting: http://www.aspeninstitute.it/aspenia-online/article/gli-assetti-internazionali-e-il-%E2%80%9Cproblema-germania%E2%80%9D .

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