Ernst Thälmann Memorial

The Ernst-Thälmann Gedenkstätte stands in Dresden’s Strehlen district at Strehlener Platz, between Teplitzer Straße and August-Bebel-Straße. A bronze bust by artist Johannes Peschel was unveiled in April 1986 to mark Ernst Thälmann’s hundredth birthday. The square itself bore the name Ernst-Thälmann-Platz until 1990. The memorial’s two flanking steles carry a metal inscription of Thälmann’s words: “Politik, das ist die sich in der Gegenwart vollziehende Geschichte.” Visitors can read the quote while standing between the upright slabs. The setting is quiet, urban and uncluttered. The bronze head sits on a simple pedestal near the tram tracks. From here the city’s southern districts stretch away in straight lines of apartment blocks and green strips. The memorial is small but sharply focused, offering a moment’s pause in everyday movement.