Schicksalstag

Categories: germany

Date: 09 November 2007 22:02:14

Since 2001, we have all been familiar with a particular date, commonly known as 9/11. The terrorist attacks on America were named, unsurprisingly, in an American fashion. (Note to my transatlantic readers: Here in Europe we would usually talk of 11/9 when talking about 11 September as we use the dd/mm/yy format.)

Germany has its own version of 9/11 which is today, 9 November. I haven't studied German history but inevitably in the course of my study of literature and language, certain events have come up. I remember being jaw-droppingly astonished when I noticed a certain pattern emerging.

9 November 1848 - Robert Blum executed - death became a symbol for the futility of Germany's 1848 rebellion
9 November 1918 - Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicates - Germany declared a republic
9 November 1923 - Munich Beer Hall Putsch - Hitler's failed coup d'état
9 November 1938 - Kristallnacht - anti-Semitic action against businesses and homes
9 November 1989 - Fall of the Berlin Wall

Small wonder then, that the German 9/11 is sometimes known as Schicksalstag, the day of fate.