The statue of

Leopold I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau Leopold I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau (3 July 1676 – 7 April 1747) was a German prince of the House of Ascania and ruler of the principality of Anhalt-Dessau from 1693 to 1747. He was also a ''Generalfeldmarschall'' in the Prussian army. Nickname ...

("der alte Dessauer") is a

bronze sculpture Bronze is the most popular metal for Casting (metalworking), cast metal sculptures; a cast bronze sculpture is often called simply "a bronze". It can be used for statues, singly or in groups, reliefs, and small statuettes and figurines, as w ...

installed at

Wilhelmplatz Wilhelmplatz was a square in the Mitte district of Berlin, at the corner of Wilhelmstrasse and Voßstraße. The square also gave its name to a Berlin U-Bahn station which has since been renamed Mohrenstraße. A number of notable buildings were con ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, Germany. At the end of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

in 1763 a plan was formulated to erect marble statues of Prussian generals who died in the war. Initially four were installed, between 1769 and 1786. Between 1794 and 1828 two statues, including Leopold I by

Johann Gottfried Schadow Johann Gottfried Schadow (20 May 1764 – 27 January 1850) was a German Prussian sculptor. His most iconic work is the chariot on top of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, executed in 1793 when he was still only 29. Biography Schadow was born i ...

, which had initially been intended to be installed elsewhere in Berlin were relocated there. Because of the vulnerability of the marble statues, the sculptor

Christian Daniel Rauch Christian Daniel Rauch (2 January 1777 – 3 December 1857) was a German sculptor. He founded the Berlin school of sculpture, and was the foremost German sculptor of the 19th century. Life Rauch was born at Arolsen in the Principality of ...

suggested recasting them in Bronze. The marble originals were moved to the

Bode Museum The Bode-Museum (English: ''Bode Museum''), formerly called the Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum (''Emperor Frederick Museum''), is a listed building on the Museum Island in the historic centre of Berlin. It was built from 1898 to 1904 by order of Germ ...

, and the new statues were cast by

August Kiß August Karl Eduard Kiss, or Kiß (October 11, 1802 – March 24, 1865) was a German sculptor, known for his monumental Bronze sculpture, bronzes. Life and works Kiss was born in Paprotzan (now Paprocany, part of Tychy in Poland) in Prussian S ...

. The statues survived

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, but were not on public view for many years. Finally the statues or Leopold and

Hans Joachim von Zieten Hans Joachim von Zieten, sometimes spelled Johann Joachim von Ziethen, (14 May 1699 – 26 January 1786), also known as ''Zieten aus dem Busch'', was a cavalry general in the Prussian Army. He served in four wars and was instrumental in s ...

were re-erected between 2003 and 2005 on a subway island on the transverse axis of the former Wilhelmplatz.

References

Bronze sculptures in Germany Statues in Berlin Outdoor sculptures in Berlin Sculptures of men in Germany Statues in Germany Mitte {{Germany-sculpture-stub