Barack Obama plagued by spectre of Nazi past

As Barack Obama prepares to make his landmark speech in Berlin on Thursday, hoping, no doubt, to capture something of the spirit (in his dreams, at least) of JFK’s famous "Ich bin ein Berliner" oration, many Germans believe the venue he’s chosen to deliver this address, the Siegessaule, or Victory Column, is unwise because of its past associations with Nazi Party.

The choice of site was made after Chancellor Angela Merkel made it known to Obama’s team that she did not approve of him campaigning at the Brandenburg Gate, both the symbol of the Cold War that divided the two Germanys and later, in 1989, the symbol of German reunification.

Although the column, which is located in the centre of a long and busy intersection that straddles the Tiergarten and stretches up to the Brandenburg Gate, is now most associated with the city’s annual “Love Parade”, it once served as symbol of German aggression. The monument was built in 1864 to commemorate Prussia's victory over Denmark. When it was inaugurated, Prussia had defeated Austria during the Austro-Prussian war in 1866 and the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-71.

Adolf Hitler relocated it about a mile toward the western part of the city to the Grosser Stern, or Great Star. Says a Berlin source: "The newspapers are digging out old photos of Nazis goose-stepping around the column and will no doubt run them on the day of the speech. It is potentially a PR disaster waiting to happen."