“DAS EHRENMAL F\u00dcR KRIEGSOPFER.” These words are part of a bronze plate. It stands outside Kriegerehrenmal in H\u00f6chsten. This Kriegerehrenmal is a poignant reminder of Dortmund’s past. It faces the horrors of war. The Kriegerehrenmal is located on Kruckeler Stra\u00dfe. It stands near the cemetery in Gro\u00dfholthausen. It is across from L\u00f6ttringhauser Stra\u00dfe.
The city of Dortmund and some southern suburbs commissioned Fritz Richter-Elsner. He was to create the Kriegerehrenmal. It was erected shortly before World War II. The inauguration took place at the beginning of the war. It featured Nazi symbols. Hakenkreuz-Fahnenmeer and Uniform-Aufmarsch were part of it. Ernst Giesing, a Ruhr writer, attended the ceremony as a child. He could not separate the monument from the terror regime. He wished the Kriegerehrenmal could be destroyed.
The Kriegerehrenmal is raised by several steps. A life-size bronze figure dominates it. The figure is a uniformed soldier. He wears a steel helmet. He holds a fixed bayonet. The circular area is about 25 meters in diameter. It includes a rusticated sandstone wall. The wall features figural reliefs. Tablets commemorate the dead of both World Wars.
Kriegerdenkm\u00e4ler are erected after a war. They serve to remember the fallen. They can also be built before a war. They aim to evoke revenge and heroism. The Hombruch district council discussed the Kriegerehrenmal. They decided to preserve it despite objections. They added text to explain it to future generations.
The bronze plate provides context. It says the soldier hides death and sorrow. He conceals the futility of war. It calls the Kriegerehrenmal a historical representation. It recognizes it as a testament to its time. The plate notes the Nazi regime prepared for World War II in 1935.
The original nameplates were stolen after World War II. Steinmetzmeister Josef Kniola replaced them in 1959. He used Ruhr sandstone. In 1999, the memorial was restored. The Reinoldigilde and the Hombruch district council supported the restoration. The Kriegerehrenmal includes allegorical figures. These figures represent Klein- and Gro\u00dfholthausen. Other figures symbolize Auf dem Schnee, L\u00f6ttringhausen, and Kruckel.
Another Kriegerdenkmal exists in Marten. It honors those who fell in 1870-1871. It stands at Wischlinger Weg and Martener Stra\u00dfe. This monument is a pillar on an octagonal base. The pillar features Ehrenkranzmotiven, Girlanden, and Tafeln. The names of nine fallen soldiers from 1870/1871 are inscribed. Other names commemorate the fallen of 1866. A bronze portrait of Kaiser Wilhelm I decorates another side.
August Rothstein, a B\u00f6vinghausen sculptor, created the Kriegerdenkmal. August K\u00fcnne created the bronze work. It was inaugurated on August 16, 1873. An eagle with spread wings crowned it. A fence surrounded it. It has been under monument protection since 1983. The Arbeitsgemeinschaft Martener Vereine e.V. helped restore it in the 1990s.
Johannes Boese created another memorial. It honored the dead of the 1866 and 1870-1871 wars. This monument features a bronze Fahnentr\u00e4ger. It also has a Giebel covered with weapons.
Consider Kriegerehrenmal in H\u00f6chsten. It is more than stone and bronze. It represents memory, controversy, and historical context.