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The Ehrensäule stands on Melchior-Otto-Platz in Kronach, a town in Upper Franconia. It is a tall stone column topped by the city’s coat of arms. The square around it is paved and open, with buildings on three sides. The column honours Melchior Otto Voit von Salzburg, the Bamberg prince-bishop who rewarded Kronach’s bravery during the Thirty Years’ War. In 1651 he gave the town new arms, a golden chain for the mayor and a ceremonial robe for the council. Five years later the citizens raised the column, carved by Johann Brenck and Hans Georg Schlehendorn. Its two shield-bearers carry flayed skins, recalling men who were skinned alive by the Swedes in 1632 after disabling enemy guns. Visitors see the restored column with its damaged cartouche from 1945. The annual Melchior-Otto Day in January begins with a mass and ends with gun salutes at the column. During the Sweden Procession it serves as one of four stations along the route. The square itself is a quiet place to stand and look up at the emblem of defiance that has watched over Kronach for centuries.