Großer Wachaufzug

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The Großer Wachaufzug, or Grand Guard Mounting, was a military ceremony and guard change in Berlin, mostly held at the Neue Wache. Guards have been stationed there since 1931.

The ceremony began on 18 September 1818 for a visit by Tsar Alexander I, with the Prussian 1st Guards Grenadiers as the first guards. It continued for about 100 years, ending with the end of the Prussian monarchy in November 1918. The event ended with a concert in the Kastanienwäldchen.

During the Weimar Republic, the ceremony was first abolished and then revived. In 1925 Reich President Paul von Hindenburg brought it back, and it was held twice a week. A marching band would lead the guard from Brandenburg Gate, across Pariser Platz, to Unter den Linden. On May 31, the anniversary of the Battle of Jutland, the Reichsmarine acted as guards.

In 1933, the Nazi government brought back the Wachaufzug under the Linden after a two-year break. It was mounted by the Infantry Regiment Großdeutschland, and later by the Luftwaffe Guard Battalion, led by a lieutenant on horseback. Until the Battle of Berlin, the ceremony moved along the Linden trees in front of the Neue Wache.

In the Cold War, East Germany’s National People’s Army revived the ritual on International Workers’ Day in 1962. The memorial at that time honored the victims of fascism and militarism. Two soldiers from the Friedrich Engels Guard Regiment served as permanent guards, and the ceremony was held every Wednesday and Saturday, becoming a major tourist attraction. Berliner Rundfunk broadcast it. The route began at the Friedrich Engels Barracks on Kupfergraben, with the band and drums leading the procession. In the GDR, the ceremony grew into a Berlin tourist attraction.

The last ceremony took place on 26 September 1990, just before German reunification. The united Germany did not continue the Grand Guard Mounting tradition.