Germania (personification)
Germania is the personification of the German nation or the Germans as a whole, most commonly associated with the Romantic Era and the Revolutions of 1848, though the figure was later used by Imperial Germany.
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[edit] Description
Germania is usually shown as a robust woman with long, flowing, reddish-blonde hair and wearing armour. She often wields the "Reichsschwert" (imperial sword), and possesses a mediaeval-style shield that sometimes bears the image of a black eagle on a gold field. Additionally, she is sometimes shown as carrying or wearing the Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire.
In pre-1871 images, the banner she holds is the black-red-gold flag of modern Germany, but in post-1871 depictions it is the black-white-red flag of the German Empire.
[edit] Meanings of some symbols
Attribute | Significance |
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Broken chains | Being freed |
Breastplate with eagle | Symbol of the German empire - strength |
Crown of oak leaves | Heroism |
Sword | Symbol of power |
Hemp branch around the sword | Willingness to make peace |
Black, red and gold tricolour | Flag of the liberal-nationalists in 1848; banned by dukes of the German states |
Rays of the rising sun | Beginning of a new era |
[edit] Gallery
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Italia and Germania by Johann Friedrich Overbeck, 1828
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Fresco by Philipp Veit, 1834–36. She is holding a shield with the German Confederation's arms. The smaller shields are the arms of the seven original Electors of the Holy Roman Empire.
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Germania at the Watch on the Rhine by Hermann Wislicenus, 1873
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Statue by Johannes Schilling, 1877-83, part of the Niederwalddenkmal near Rüdesheim am Rhein
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Germany 1914, by Friedrich August von Kaulbach
[edit] References
- Lionel Gossman. “Making of a Romantic Icon: The Religious Context of Friedrich Overbeck’s ‘Italia und Germania.’” American Philosophical Society, 2007. ISBN 0871699753.
- Germania Briefmarken (German)
[edit] See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Germania |
- Flag and Coat of Arms of Germany
- Deutscher Michel, personification of the German people
- Bavaria, personification of the Land of Bavaria
- Berolina, personification of Berlin
- Hammonia, personification of Hamburg
- Hetalia Axis Powers, a manga and anime series where a male, moefied Germany as a main character.
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