Liberty Bell (Berlin)

The Liberty Bell (in German, "Freiheitsglocke") in Berlin is a bell of great historic significance. It was given as a gift from Americans to the city of Berlin in 1950 as a symbol of the fight for freedom and against communism in Europe, and was inspired by the American Liberty Bell. The bell has since 1950 been installed in the Rathaus Schöneberg, which was the city hall of West Berlin.

The initiative to give Berlin such a bell was taken by the "Crusade for Freedom", a campaign sponsored by the National Committee for a Free Europe, the organization which operated Radio Free Europe. The campaign was launched by U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower on Labor Day, 1950, with General Lucius D. Clay, later known as the "father of the Berlin airlift", as its chairman. The purpose of the Campaign was to offer all Americans an opportunity to play a personal part in a demonstration of the "free world's determination to resist Communist aggression."

The 10-ton bell arrived from the British foundry of Gillett and Johnston to a ticker tape parade in New York City. The bell subsequently visited 21 American cities, and people in every state were encouraged to sign a "Declaration of Freedom" [ [http://www.sujet.de/sign/doku/freiheitsglocke/s5_e.html 50th Anniversary of the Freedom Bell in Berlin ] ] . 16 million signatures from American citizens were collected and are enshrined in Berlin along with the bell. [ [http://www.martinmdb.com/peacebells.html The Martins, World Bells of Peace and Freedom ] ] The bell then traveled to Berlin, and was permanently installed in the West Berlin city hall on United Nations Day, October 24, 1950 [http://www.dradio.de/dlf/sendungen/kalenderblatt/430825/ (in German)] . More than 400,000 Berliners, some 100,000 of them having risked crossing the border from East Berlin, filled the square before the city hall (now John-F.-Kennedy-Platz) to witness the dedication ceremonies. General Clay gave a speech and pushed the button that started the bell ringing. Its deep tones were heard throughout East Berlin and into East Germany. The communist party of German Democratic Republic denounced the Freedom Bell, with Politburo member Hans Jendretsky warning: "The rope of the death bell will become the gallows rope for those who ring it."

The bell is rung daily at noon, and at midnight on Christmas Eve and on New Year's Eve [http://www.berlin.de/ba-tempelhof-schoeneberg/derbezirk/wissenswertes/freiheitsglocke.html (in German)] . A recording of the ringing was broadcast by RIAS, the American radio in West Berlin, every Sunday just before noon. These broadcasts have been continued by the successor of RIAS, Deutschlandradio Kultur. In the radio broadcasts, the ringing of the bell is followed by an excerpt from the text of the "Declaration of Freedom" in German, read by prominent theatre actors.

The bell was also rung on several special occasions: The Uprising of June 17 of 1953, the Hungarian Uprising of 1956, the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961 and the Reunification of Germany of 1990. In 2001, the bell was rung on occasion of the September 11, 2001 attacks, and thousands of Berlin citizens paid their respect at John-F.-Kennedy-Platz before the former city hall of West Berlin.

References