Bitburg
Encyclopedia
Bitburg (ˈbɪtbʊʁk is a city in Germany
, capital of the district Bitburg-Prüm
, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate
.
It is situated approx. 25 km (16 mi.) north-west of Trier
, and 50 km (31 mi.) north-east of Luxembourg (city)
. One American
airbase, Spangdahlem Air Base
, is located nearby.
, Beda.
Bitburg originated approximately 2000 years ago as a stopover for traffic from Lyon
, through Metz
and Trier
to Cologne
. The first mentioned name was “Vicus Beda”. Emperor Constantine the Great expanded the settlement to a road castle around 330, the central part of which forms the town centre to the present day. Bitburg is first documented only after the end of the Roman Empire
around 715 as “castrum bedense”. It subsequently became part of Franconia
.
In 1262, the castle gained municipal rights. In the middle of the tenth century the city came under the county of Luxembourg
(later duchy), and in 1443 under the county of Burgundy
. After 1506 the place belonged first to the Spanish Netherlands, and from 1714 to the Austrian Netherlands. In 1794 the city came under French
administration, and in 1798 became the principal place of a canton of the newly-created Département des Forêts. This led to a short lived economic upturn, and Bitburg received among other things a court and a land registry.
In 1815 by the resolution of the Congress of Vienna
, Bitburg was transferred to the Kingdom of Prussia
, where until 1822 it belonged administratively as district town to the province of Niederrhein, and afterwards to the Rhine province.
Like the remaining parts of Eifel
, Bitburg was very poor. Economic ascent began again with the seizure of power of Adolf Hitler
and the measures for the creation of infrastructure that was important for war, particularly the Westwall, new armed forces barracks and with the development of the Kylltal railway. It is said that the building used as the post office at Bitburg Annex (what is left of Bitburg Air Base) was the headquarters building for Hitler when he was in the city.
On 24 December 1944, Bitburg was 85% destroyed by air raids, and later officially designated by the Americans as a “dead city”. Subsequently, Luxembourg
soldiers occupied the city, replaced by the French from 1955. In 1965 a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) base was opened under American leadership. At the end of the 1980s, the French withdrew their last troops and NATO took over the former French barracks. After the First Gulf War
large parts of the USAF 53rd were moved into the larger Spangdahlem
base. In 1994, NATO finally quit most of Bitburg for the airport.
was scheduled to attend a G7
economic summit in Bonn
that week in 1985, West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl
saw an opportunity to demonstrate the strength of the friendship that existed between Germany and its former foe. During a November 1984 visit to the White House
, Kohl appealed to Reagan to join him in symbolizing the reconciliation of their two countries at a German military cemetery. It was suggested that the Kolmeshöhe Cemetery near Bitburg was both suitably close and relevant, as 11,000 Americans attached to a nearby airbase lived in harmony with the same number of Germans. Reagan agreed, and later told an aide he felt he owed Kohl, who despite considerable public and political opposition had stood steadfast with Reagan on the deployment of Pershing II missiles in West Germany, when Reagan had been determined to respond to the placement of Soviet missiles that threatened Europe.
made a planning visit to Bitburg. The 32 rows of headstones were covered with snow. Deaver was usually very skillful in carrying out his role as public relations maestro for Reagan, but this time he and his team failed to discover that 49 members of the Waffen-SS
were buried at Kolmeshöhe. A decision was made by the Reagan team not to include a visit to a concentration camp
, as had been previously suggested by Kohl. The president said he didn't want to risk "reawakening the passions of the time" or offend his hosts by visiting a concentration camp.
informed the media of the planned visit to Bitburg. When asked who was buried at Kolmeshöhe, Speakes said he thought both American and German soldiers were there. Reporters soon discovered that no American servicemen were in the cemetery (in fact, the remains of all U.S. soldiers had long since been removed from German soil) and that Waffen-SS graves were located close to the proposed ceremony. When questioned, Bitburg Mayor Theo Hallet pointed out, all German military cemeteries were likely to contain at least a few SS graves. Such distinctions, though, failed to placate those who were opposed to Reagan's visit on moral and political grounds. Decorations and memorials on the Waffen-SS graves were removed just prior to Reagan's visit, and replaced right after.
officers, and celebrities, protested the planned visit. Concentration camp survivor and author Elie Wiesel
spoke out on the topic at an unrelated White House
ceremony, saying, "I... implore you to do something else, to find another way, another site. That place, Mr. President, is not your place." 53 senators (including 11 Republicans), signed a letter asking the president to cancel, and 257 representatives (including 84 Republicans) signed a letter urging Chancellor Kohl to withdraw the invitation. Former Army S/Sgt. Jim Hively mailed his World War II decorations, including a silver star and a bronze star, to Reagan in protest. The Ramones
recorded the song "My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes to Bitburg)," which alludes to Bedtime for Bonzo
, a movie from Reagan's film career that co-starred a chimpanzee, and Frank Zappa
recorded "Reagan At Bitburg". Robyn Hitchcock
's song The President from his album Element of Light
also makes reference to the incident.
Chancellor Kohl responded in an interview with The New York Times
: "I will not give up the idea. If we don't go to Bitburg, if we don't do what we jointly planned, we will deeply offend the feelings of [my] people." A poll revealed that 72% of West Germans thought the visit should go forward as planned. Kohl admitted that rarely had German-American relations been so strained, and in the days leading up to the visit, the White House and the Chancellery were pitted against each other in the blame game. The White House claimed the Germans had given assurances that nothing in the Bitburg visit would be an "embarrassment" for the president: "As clumsily as we handled it, Kohl &. Co. have surpassed us in spades." A German official said: "The Americans also have a responsibility toward the president. They must also check on the history that is beneath the ground. It was not very intelligent." Reagan defended himself by saying:
Reagan was criticized for this statement by opponents of the visit. Equating Nazi soldiers with Holocaust victims, responded Rabbi Alexander M. Schindler, president of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations
, was "a callous offense for the Jewish people." Some critics claimed that Communications Director Pat Buchanan
wrote the statement, which he denies. Kohl confirmed earlier press comment that in the last days of the war he was able to avoid service in the SS because he was only 15, "but they hanged a boy from a tree who was perhaps only two years older with a sign saying TRAITOR because he had tried to run away rather than serve."
Kohl made a call to the White House days before Reagan's visit to make sure the president wasn't wavering in the face of criticism, not to mention pressure from wife Nancy
. The Chancellor's aide, Horst Teltschik later said: "Once we knew about the SS dead at Bitburg - knowing that these SS people were seventeen to eighteen years of age, and knowing that some Germans were forced to become members of the SS, having no alternative - the question was, Should this be a reason to cancel?" Reagan aide Robert McFarlane
later said: "Once Reagan learned that Kohl would really be badly damaged by a withdrawal, he said 'We can't do that; I owe him.'" Prior to sending Deaver back to West Germany for the third time, just two days before the scheduled visit, Reagan told his deputy chief of staff: "I know you and Nancy don't want me to go through with this, but I don't want you to change anything when you get over there, because history will prove I'm right. If we can't reconcile after forty years, we are never going to be able to do it."
There was one announced change: an added visit to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
to itinerary.
The men buried in the Bitburg cemetery were part of Hitler's Waffen-SS
. At the Nuremberg Trials
the Waffen-SS was declared a criminal organization with an exception only being made for those who were forced to join after 1943.
Reagan spent only eight minutes at the Kolmeshöhe Cemetery. Along with Kohl, 90-year-old General Matthew Ridgway
, who had commanded the 82nd Airborne in World War II, and Luftwaffe
ace and former head of NATO General Johannes Steinhoff
, Reagan placed a wreath at a wall of remembrance. After placing the wreath, and standing to attention in honour while a short trumpet salute sounded Steinhoff, in an unscripted act, turned and shook hands with Ridgway. Reagan smiled, and firmly shook General Steinhoff's hand. Kohl later thanked Steinhoff for his actions.
Security was heavy for the three-mile route from the NATO airbase at Kolmeshohe, lined with 2,000 policemen - one posted every twelve feet: few protesters showed up. When Reagan arrived at the cemetery, Michael Moore
and a Jewish friend of his whose parents were at Auschwitz were there with a banner that read "WE CAME FROM MICHIGAN: THEY KILLED MY FAMILY". They were shown on live TV networks across the country. Reagan made one last appearance with Kohl at the airbase, before 7,500 spectators waving American and West German flags. Kohl thanked the president for staying the course: "This walk... over the graves of soldiers was not an easy walk. I thank you personally as a friend that you undertook this walk with me." Reagan responded candidly: "This visit has stirred many emotions in the American and German people too. Some old wounds have been reopened, and this I regret very much, because this should be a time of healing."
, near Trier
. Bitburg's Mayor, Dr. Joachim Streit, while not a party member, is ideologically aligned with the Social Democratic Party
. Bitburg has circa 14,112 citizens. The biggest company is the Bitburger brewery, one of the largest beer
manufacturers in the world. Bitburger Bier is a major sponsor of the German soccer team. Bitburg hosts the annual European Festival of Folklore.
Bitburg had a military airbase that is not active but still houses American troops and civilians. Today only parts of the barracks are left in Bitburg by NATO in requirement, and it is now considered part of Spangdahlem Air Base
. At 31 December 2005, 3,210 American soldiers and their dependents live in the city.
In 1995, the former NATO base was designated the Bitburg Airfield Trade Area, providing 5 km² and at present a home where 180 enterprises have established themselves.
The Nims Sauertalbahn branch accesses Bitburg (city), which originally crossed the Irrel. The trackage was shut down in several sections, with the last section to Wolsfeld
shut from 1997. The remaining six kilometres were removed in 2006, and re-designed to a large extent to a cycle track.
with:
Arlon, Belgium
since 1965 Bad Köstritz
(Thuringia
), Germany
since 1992 Diekirch
, Luxembourg
since 1962 Rethel, France
since 1965 Shelbyville
(Kentucky
), United States
since 1962
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, capital of the district Bitburg-Prüm
Bitburg-Prüm
The Eifelkreis Bitburg-Prüm is a district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by Luxembourg, Belgium and the districts of Euskirchen, Vulkaneifel, Bernkastel-Wittlich and Trier-Saarburg.- History :...
, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
.
It is situated approx. 25 km (16 mi.) north-west of Trier
Trier
Trier, historically called in English Treves is a city in Germany on the banks of the Moselle. It is the oldest city in Germany, founded in or before 16 BC....
, and 50 km (31 mi.) north-east of Luxembourg (city)
Luxembourg (city)
The city of Luxembourg , also known as Luxembourg City , is a commune with city status, and the capital of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. It is located at the confluence of the Alzette and Pétrusse Rivers in southern Luxembourg...
. One American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
airbase, Spangdahlem Air Base
Spangdahlem Air Base
Spangdahlem Air Base is a United States Air Force base located near the small German town of Spangdahlem, approximately 30 km NNE of the city of Trier, Rhineland-Palatinate.-Units:...
, is located nearby.
History
The city’s name derives from its Celtic toponymToponymy
Toponymy is the scientific study of place names , their origins, meanings, use and typology. The word "toponymy" is derived from the Greek words tópos and ónoma . Toponymy is itself a branch of onomastics, the study of names of all kinds...
, Beda.
Bitburg originated approximately 2000 years ago as a stopover for traffic from Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, through Metz
Metz
Metz is a city in the northeast of France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers.Metz is the capital of the Lorraine region and prefecture of the Moselle department. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, Metz forms a central place...
and Trier
Trier
Trier, historically called in English Treves is a city in Germany on the banks of the Moselle. It is the oldest city in Germany, founded in or before 16 BC....
to Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
. The first mentioned name was “Vicus Beda”. Emperor Constantine the Great expanded the settlement to a road castle around 330, the central part of which forms the town centre to the present day. Bitburg is first documented only after the end of the Roman Empire
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
around 715 as “castrum bedense”. It subsequently became part of Franconia
Franconia
Franconia is a region of Germany comprising the northern parts of the modern state of Bavaria, a small part of southern Thuringia, and a region in northeastern Baden-Württemberg called Tauberfranken...
.
In 1262, the castle gained municipal rights. In the middle of the tenth century the city came under the county of Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
(later duchy), and in 1443 under the county of Burgundy
County of Burgundy
The Free County of Burgundy , was a medieval county , within the traditional province and modern French region Franche-Comté, whose very French name is still reminiscent of the unusual title of its count: Freigraf...
. After 1506 the place belonged first to the Spanish Netherlands, and from 1714 to the Austrian Netherlands. In 1794 the city came under French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
administration, and in 1798 became the principal place of a canton of the newly-created Département des Forêts. This led to a short lived economic upturn, and Bitburg received among other things a court and a land registry.
In 1815 by the resolution of the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
, Bitburg was transferred to the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
, where until 1822 it belonged administratively as district town to the province of Niederrhein, and afterwards to the Rhine province.
Like the remaining parts of Eifel
Eifel
The Eifel is a low mountain range in western Germany and eastern Belgium. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the south of the German-speaking Community of Belgium....
, Bitburg was very poor. Economic ascent began again with the seizure of power of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and the measures for the creation of infrastructure that was important for war, particularly the Westwall, new armed forces barracks and with the development of the Kylltal railway. It is said that the building used as the post office at Bitburg Annex (what is left of Bitburg Air Base) was the headquarters building for Hitler when he was in the city.
On 24 December 1944, Bitburg was 85% destroyed by air raids, and later officially designated by the Americans as a “dead city”. Subsequently, Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
soldiers occupied the city, replaced by the French from 1955. In 1965 a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) base was opened under American leadership. At the end of the 1980s, the French withdrew their last troops and NATO took over the former French barracks. After the First Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
large parts of the USAF 53rd were moved into the larger Spangdahlem
Spangdahlem
Spangdahlem is a municipality in the district of Bitburg-Prüm, in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany. The USAF Spangdahlem Air Base is nearby....
base. In 1994, NATO finally quit most of Bitburg for the airport.
Reagan visit controversy
The proposed visit began as part of a plan to observe the 40th anniversary of V-E Day. As U.S. President Ronald ReaganRonald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
was scheduled to attend a G7
G8
The Group of Eight is a forum, created by France in 1975, for the governments of seven major economies: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In 1997, the group added Russia, thus becoming the G8...
economic summit in Bonn
Bonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....
that week in 1985, West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl
Helmut Kohl
Helmut Josef Michael Kohl is a German conservative politician and statesman. He was Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 and the chairman of the Christian Democratic Union from 1973 to 1998...
saw an opportunity to demonstrate the strength of the friendship that existed between Germany and its former foe. During a November 1984 visit to the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
, Kohl appealed to Reagan to join him in symbolizing the reconciliation of their two countries at a German military cemetery. It was suggested that the Kolmeshöhe Cemetery near Bitburg was both suitably close and relevant, as 11,000 Americans attached to a nearby airbase lived in harmony with the same number of Germans. Reagan agreed, and later told an aide he felt he owed Kohl, who despite considerable public and political opposition had stood steadfast with Reagan on the deployment of Pershing II missiles in West Germany, when Reagan had been determined to respond to the placement of Soviet missiles that threatened Europe.
Planning
In February 1985, then White House deputy chief of staff Michael DeaverMichael Deaver
Michael Keith Deaver was a member of President Ronald Reagan's White House staff serving as White House Deputy Chief of Staff under James Baker III and Donald Regan from January 1981 until May 1985.-Early life:...
made a planning visit to Bitburg. The 32 rows of headstones were covered with snow. Deaver was usually very skillful in carrying out his role as public relations maestro for Reagan, but this time he and his team failed to discover that 49 members of the Waffen-SS
Waffen-SS
The Waffen-SS was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. It constituted the armed wing of the Schutzstaffel or SS, an organ of the Nazi Party. The Waffen-SS saw action throughout World War II and grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions, and served alongside...
were buried at Kolmeshöhe. A decision was made by the Reagan team not to include a visit to a concentration camp
Nazi concentration camps
Nazi Germany maintained concentration camps throughout the territories it controlled. The first Nazi concentration camps set up in Germany were greatly expanded after the Reichstag fire of 1933, and were intended to hold political prisoners and opponents of the regime...
, as had been previously suggested by Kohl. The president said he didn't want to risk "reawakening the passions of the time" or offend his hosts by visiting a concentration camp.
Announcement
On 11 April 1985, then White House press secretary Larry SpeakesLarry Speakes
Larry M. Speakes is a former acting spokesman for the White House under President Ronald Reagan, having held the position from 1981 to 1987.Speakes was born in Cleveland, Mississippi...
informed the media of the planned visit to Bitburg. When asked who was buried at Kolmeshöhe, Speakes said he thought both American and German soldiers were there. Reporters soon discovered that no American servicemen were in the cemetery (in fact, the remains of all U.S. soldiers had long since been removed from German soil) and that Waffen-SS graves were located close to the proposed ceremony. When questioned, Bitburg Mayor Theo Hallet pointed out, all German military cemeteries were likely to contain at least a few SS graves. Such distinctions, though, failed to placate those who were opposed to Reagan's visit on moral and political grounds. Decorations and memorials on the Waffen-SS graves were removed just prior to Reagan's visit, and replaced right after.
Controversy
This planned visit caused a great deal of anger outside of Germany. Many prominent government officials, U.S. ArmyUnited States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
officers, and celebrities, protested the planned visit. Concentration camp survivor and author Elie Wiesel
Elie Wiesel
Sir Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel KBE; born September 30, 1928) is a Hungarian-born Jewish-American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He is the author of 57 books, including Night, a work based on his experiences as a prisoner in the Auschwitz, Buna, and...
spoke out on the topic at an unrelated White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
ceremony, saying, "I... implore you to do something else, to find another way, another site. That place, Mr. President, is not your place." 53 senators (including 11 Republicans), signed a letter asking the president to cancel, and 257 representatives (including 84 Republicans) signed a letter urging Chancellor Kohl to withdraw the invitation. Former Army S/Sgt. Jim Hively mailed his World War II decorations, including a silver star and a bronze star, to Reagan in protest. The Ramones
Ramones
The Ramones were an American rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first punk rock group...
recorded the song "My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes to Bitburg)," which alludes to Bedtime for Bonzo
Bedtime for Bonzo
Bedtime for Bonzo is a 1951 comedy film directed by Fred de Cordova, starring future U.S. President Ronald Reagan. It revolves around the attempts of the central character, Professor Peter Boyd , to teach human morals to a chimpanzee, hoping to solve the "nature versus nurture" question...
, a movie from Reagan's film career that co-starred a chimpanzee, and Frank Zappa
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappa was an American composer, singer-songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, orchestral and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed...
recorded "Reagan At Bitburg". Robyn Hitchcock
Robyn Hitchcock
Robyn Rowan Hitchcock is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. While primarily a vocalist and guitarist, he also plays harmonica, piano and bass guitar....
's song The President from his album Element of Light
Element of Light
Element of Light is the sixth album by singer-songwriter Robyn Hitchcock and his third with his backing band, the Egyptians.Most of the album was recorded at Alaska Studios and Berry Street, but two tracks, "The President" and "Lady Waters & The Hooded One", were live recordings made for the BBC,...
also makes reference to the incident.
Chancellor Kohl responded in an interview with The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
: "I will not give up the idea. If we don't go to Bitburg, if we don't do what we jointly planned, we will deeply offend the feelings of [my] people." A poll revealed that 72% of West Germans thought the visit should go forward as planned. Kohl admitted that rarely had German-American relations been so strained, and in the days leading up to the visit, the White House and the Chancellery were pitted against each other in the blame game. The White House claimed the Germans had given assurances that nothing in the Bitburg visit would be an "embarrassment" for the president: "As clumsily as we handled it, Kohl &. Co. have surpassed us in spades." A German official said: "The Americans also have a responsibility toward the president. They must also check on the history that is beneath the ground. It was not very intelligent." Reagan defended himself by saying:
"These [SS troops] were the villains, as we know, that conducted the persecutions and all. But there are 2,000 graves there, and most of those, the average age is about 18. I think that there's nothing wrong with visiting that cemetery where those young men are victims of NazismNazismNazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
also, even though they were fighting in the German uniform, draftedConscriptionConscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
into service to carry out the hateful wishes of the Nazis. They were victims, just as surely as the victims in the concentration campsNazi concentration campsNazi Germany maintained concentration camps throughout the territories it controlled. The first Nazi concentration camps set up in Germany were greatly expanded after the Reichstag fire of 1933, and were intended to hold political prisoners and opponents of the regime...
"
Reagan was criticized for this statement by opponents of the visit. Equating Nazi soldiers with Holocaust victims, responded Rabbi Alexander M. Schindler, president of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations
Union for Reform Judaism
The Union for Reform Judaism , formerly known as the Union of American Hebrew Congregations , is an organization which supports Reform Jewish congregations in North America. The current President is Rabbi Eric H...
, was "a callous offense for the Jewish people." Some critics claimed that Communications Director Pat Buchanan
Pat Buchanan
Patrick Joseph "Pat" Buchanan is an American paleoconservative political commentator, author, syndicated columnist, politician and broadcaster. Buchanan was a senior adviser to American Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan, and was an original host on CNN's Crossfire. He sought...
wrote the statement, which he denies. Kohl confirmed earlier press comment that in the last days of the war he was able to avoid service in the SS because he was only 15, "but they hanged a boy from a tree who was perhaps only two years older with a sign saying TRAITOR because he had tried to run away rather than serve."
Kohl made a call to the White House days before Reagan's visit to make sure the president wasn't wavering in the face of criticism, not to mention pressure from wife Nancy
Nancy Reagan
Nancy Davis Reagan is the widow of former United States President Ronald Reagan and was First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989....
. The Chancellor's aide, Horst Teltschik later said: "Once we knew about the SS dead at Bitburg - knowing that these SS people were seventeen to eighteen years of age, and knowing that some Germans were forced to become members of the SS, having no alternative - the question was, Should this be a reason to cancel?" Reagan aide Robert McFarlane
Robert McFarlane
Robert Carl "Bud" McFarlane was a National Security Advisor to President Ronald Reagan, serving from 1983 through 1985.After a career in the Marines, he became part of the Reagan administration, and was a leading architect of the Strategic Defense Initiative for defending the United States...
later said: "Once Reagan learned that Kohl would really be badly damaged by a withdrawal, he said 'We can't do that; I owe him.'" Prior to sending Deaver back to West Germany for the third time, just two days before the scheduled visit, Reagan told his deputy chief of staff: "I know you and Nancy don't want me to go through with this, but I don't want you to change anything when you get over there, because history will prove I'm right. If we can't reconcile after forty years, we are never going to be able to do it."
There was one announced change: an added visit to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
Bergen-Belsen was a Nazi concentration camp in Lower Saxony in northwestern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle...
to itinerary.
The men buried in the Bitburg cemetery were part of Hitler's Waffen-SS
Waffen-SS
The Waffen-SS was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. It constituted the armed wing of the Schutzstaffel or SS, an organ of the Nazi Party. The Waffen-SS saw action throughout World War II and grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions, and served alongside...
. At the Nuremberg Trials
Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg Trials were a series of military tribunals, held by the victorious Allied forces of World War II, most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, and economic leadership of the defeated Nazi Germany....
the Waffen-SS was declared a criminal organization with an exception only being made for those who were forced to join after 1943.
The visit
On Sunday 5 May, Reagan and Kohl appeared at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. The U.S. president's speech there, according to Time, was a "skillful exercise in both the art of eulogy and political damage control." Reagan said:"All these children of God, under bleak and lifeless mounds, the plainness of which does not even hint at the unspeakable acts that created them. Here they lie, never to hope, never to pray, never to live, never to heal, never to laugh, never to cry.... And then, rising above all this cruelty, out of this tragic and nightmarish time, beyond the anguish, the pain and suffering, and for all time, we can and must pledge: never again."
Reagan spent only eight minutes at the Kolmeshöhe Cemetery. Along with Kohl, 90-year-old General Matthew Ridgway
Matthew Ridgway
Matthew Bunker Ridgway was a United States Army General. He held several major commands and was most famous for resurrecting the United Nations war effort during the Korean War. Several historians have credited Ridgway for turning around the war in favor of the UN side...
, who had commanded the 82nd Airborne in World War II, and Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
ace and former head of NATO General Johannes Steinhoff
Johannes Steinhoff
Johannes Steinhoff was a German Luftwaffe fighter ace of World War II, and later a senior West German air force officer and military commander of NATO. Steinhoff was one of very few Luftwaffe pilots who survived to fly operationally through the whole of the war period 1939-45...
, Reagan placed a wreath at a wall of remembrance. After placing the wreath, and standing to attention in honour while a short trumpet salute sounded Steinhoff, in an unscripted act, turned and shook hands with Ridgway. Reagan smiled, and firmly shook General Steinhoff's hand. Kohl later thanked Steinhoff for his actions.
Security was heavy for the three-mile route from the NATO airbase at Kolmeshohe, lined with 2,000 policemen - one posted every twelve feet: few protesters showed up. When Reagan arrived at the cemetery, Michael Moore
Michael Moore
Michael Francis Moore is an American filmmaker, author, social critic and activist. He is the director and producer of Fahrenheit 9/11, which is the highest-grossing documentary of all time. His films Bowling for Columbine and Sicko also place in the top ten highest-grossing documentaries...
and a Jewish friend of his whose parents were at Auschwitz were there with a banner that read "WE CAME FROM MICHIGAN: THEY KILLED MY FAMILY". They were shown on live TV networks across the country. Reagan made one last appearance with Kohl at the airbase, before 7,500 spectators waving American and West German flags. Kohl thanked the president for staying the course: "This walk... over the graves of soldiers was not an easy walk. I thank you personally as a friend that you undertook this walk with me." Reagan responded candidly: "This visit has stirred many emotions in the American and German people too. Some old wounds have been reopened, and this I regret very much, because this should be a time of healing."
Today
Today Bitburg is a city in the EifelEifel
The Eifel is a low mountain range in western Germany and eastern Belgium. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the south of the German-speaking Community of Belgium....
, near Trier
Trier
Trier, historically called in English Treves is a city in Germany on the banks of the Moselle. It is the oldest city in Germany, founded in or before 16 BC....
. Bitburg's Mayor, Dr. Joachim Streit, while not a party member, is ideologically aligned with the Social Democratic Party
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
. Bitburg has circa 14,112 citizens. The biggest company is the Bitburger brewery, one of the largest beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
manufacturers in the world. Bitburger Bier is a major sponsor of the German soccer team. Bitburg hosts the annual European Festival of Folklore.
Bitburg had a military airbase that is not active but still houses American troops and civilians. Today only parts of the barracks are left in Bitburg by NATO in requirement, and it is now considered part of Spangdahlem Air Base
Spangdahlem Air Base
Spangdahlem Air Base is a United States Air Force base located near the small German town of Spangdahlem, approximately 30 km NNE of the city of Trier, Rhineland-Palatinate.-Units:...
. At 31 December 2005, 3,210 American soldiers and their dependents live in the city.
City quarters
- Bitburg-Erdorf (Train-Station)
- Bitburg-Irsch
- Bitburg-Masholder
- Bitburg-Matzen
- Bitburg-Mötsch
- Bitburg-Stahl
Economics and industry
The most well-known enterprise and landmark of the city is the Bitburger brewery.In 1995, the former NATO base was designated the Bitburg Airfield Trade Area, providing 5 km² and at present a home where 180 enterprises have established themselves.
Transport
Bitburg station is part of the Eifel line (KBS 474). Trains that pass through include:- The Eifel Mosel express (RH 12) - CologneCologneCologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
, EuskirchenEuskirchenEuskirchen is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, capital of the district Euskirchen. While Euskirchen resembles a modern shopping town, it also has a history dating back over 700 years, having been granted town-status in 1302....
, GerolsteinGerolsteinGerolstein is a town in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the seat of the like-named Verbandsgemeinde. Gerolstein is headquarters to a large mineral water firm, Gerolsteiner Brunnen...
, TrierTrierTrier, historically called in English Treves is a city in Germany on the banks of the Moselle. It is the oldest city in Germany, founded in or before 16 BC.... - The Eifel line (RB 83) - GerolsteinGerolsteinGerolstein is a town in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the seat of the like-named Verbandsgemeinde. Gerolstein is headquarters to a large mineral water firm, Gerolsteiner Brunnen...
, TrierTrierTrier, historically called in English Treves is a city in Germany on the banks of the Moselle. It is the oldest city in Germany, founded in or before 16 BC....
The Nims Sauertalbahn branch accesses Bitburg (city), which originally crossed the Irrel. The trackage was shut down in several sections, with the last section to Wolsfeld
Wolsfeld
Wolsfeld is a municipality in the district of Bitburg-Prüm, in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany....
shut from 1997. The remaining six kilometres were removed in 2006, and re-designed to a large extent to a cycle track.
International relations
Bitburg is partnered/twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
Arlon, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
since 1965 Bad Köstritz
Bad Köstritz
Bad Köstritz is a town in the district of Greiz, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated on the river Weiße Elster, 7 km northwest of Gera. Bad Köstritz is known for the Köstritzer brewery and its Schwarzbier .-External links:*...
(Thuringia
Thuringia
The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
), Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
since 1992 Diekirch
Diekirch
Diekirch is a commune with city status in north-eastern Luxembourg, capital city of the canton Diekirch and the district of Diekirch. The city is situated on the banks of the Sauer river....
, Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
since 1962 Rethel, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
since 1965 Shelbyville
Shelbyville, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 10,085 people, 3,822 households, and 2,549 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,333.5 people per square mile . There were 4,117 housing units at an average density of 544.4 per square mile...
(Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
), United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
since 1962