Leibgrenadierdenkmal

The Leibgrenadierdenkmal was a granite pillar topped with a bronze griffin, standing on Europaplatz in Karlsruhe from 1924 until 2010. It marked the service of the Badische Leib-Grenadier-Regiment, later the 1st Badisches Leib-Grenadier-Regiment Nr. 109. The regiment’s history began in 1803 when Baden became a principality and raised its own troops. In 1856 the unit was renamed the Leib-Grenadier-Regiment after the grand duke’s wedding. The monument listed battles from the Napoleonic Wars to the First World War, including Leipzig, Sedan and Verdun. The griffin was removed in 2010 for the city’s tram tunnel project and stored in a depot. After temporary display near the Prinz-Max-Palais, it was taken back into storage in 2021. Karlsruhe council debated rebuilding the monument or replacing it with a peace memorial. In 2023 councillors approved a new information stele to accompany any reconstruction. Plans now aim for the griffin to return to Europaplatz around 2029. Visitors to the site today see a busy square where the barracks once housed the regiment from 1804 to 1896. The original inscription names campaigns from the coalition wars to the Somme and Verdun. A new stele will explain the monument’s history and context. Until the griffin is reinstalled, its bronze form remains in storage while the square continues to serve as a public space.