ENTER THE IRON DOZEN - THE NATIONAL MEMORIAL IN KREUZBERG

Today in Berlin: 30 March, 1821

On March 30, 1821 – on the seventh anniversary of the Prussian charge of the Montmartre and of the conquest of Paris, which unavoidably triggered Napoleon's demise – King Friedrich Wilhelm III arrived on top of the Tempelhofer Berg (then still known as the Weinberg or the Runder Berg). The highest natural elevation in what is now central Berlin but back in the days belonged to a district outside the city known as Tempelhofer Vorstadt.

Accompanied by an illustrious guest, Russian Tsar Alexander I (Friedrich Wilhelm’s brother-in-arms in the conflict with Napoleon Bonaparte), the king came to witness the unveiling of a monument commemorating their mutual victories in the Wars of Liberation.

A monument that remains one of Berlin’s most recognisable sights until this day…