Deutsches Eck
Due to the settlement of Order of Teutonic Knights in 1216 on a split of land - the point where the Rhine and Moselle flow together - got its historical name "Deutsches Eck" (German Corner).
The so-called “Honsschwanz” or “dog’s tail” was made in the 19th century. This is a sandbank which was used as an emergency port in the mouth of the Moselle. This also represented the last foothill of Hunsrück.
The confluence of the Rhine and Moselle has played a significant role in forming the town’s name; it is derived from Latin phrase “Castellum apud Confluentes”, meaning “the castle next to the confluence”, that over the years has formed into today’s name Koblenz.
Monument of Emperor Wilhelm I
In the year 1888, shortly after the death of Emperor Wilhelm I, the idea was developed to build a memorial for the emperor who had led to the reunification of Germany after 3 wars.
Three years later in 1891, the grandson of the deceased Emperor Wilhelm II selected the German corner in Koblenz as a suitable place.
The architect Bruno Schmitz, the constructor of the civil war memorial in Leipzig, and Emil Hundrieser finally designed and constructed the monument from 1893 till 1897.
The monument, dedicated to the Emperor Wilhelm I, was unveiled in a formal ceremony in the presence of Emperor Wilhelm II on August 31, 1897.
On March 16, 1945, shortly before the end of the Second World War, the memorial was destroyed by an American artillery attack. (Tip: the impressive head of the original statue can still be viewed in the Central Rhine Museum in Koblenz!)
In May 1953 the Federal President Theodor Heuss declared the remained pedestal as a monument of German unity.
A flagpole with the national flag of Germany was located on the abandoned pedestal of monument, and it lay there until 1993.
On September 2, 1993, Europe’s biggest floating crane lifted the equestrian statue of Kaiser Wilhelm I onto its restored pedestal. This was made possible by citizens' initiative and private sponsorship by a Koblenz business man.
The monument with a total height of 37 meters, including 14-meter equestrian statue of Emperor Wilhelm I, is a tourist magnet that attracts more that 2 million visitors annually, and since 2002 it became a UNESCO World Culture Heritage Site of the Upper Middle Rhine Valley.
German Corner is fringed by the flags of the German states, as well as the European flag and the flag of the United States of America, which is dedicated to the victims of the 11th September 2001.
