Friedrich Schiller Monument

The Friedrich Schiller Monument in Wrocław is a bust of the German poet standing in Szczytnicki Park. It rests on a pedestal formed by a column with arms curving symmetrically down towards the base in an amphitheatre-like shape.

First unveiling in 1905

The monument was first unveiled on 9 May 1905, on the hundredth anniversary of Schiller's death, on the initiative of the Schiller Society then active in Wrocław. Funds for its construction were provided by the city council.

The designers of the monument and the bust

The design of the monument was made by architect Felix Henry, and the poet's bust was sculpted by Ludwig Menzl, based on a 19th-century model of a monumental bust by Johann Heinrich Dannecker. The base of the monument consists of two granite steps, with the rest made of marble.

Destruction and reconstruction

The monument was destroyed after 1945. In the early 1990s the Polish-German Cultural Cooperation Society "Theatre on the Oder" undertook efforts to rebuild it. It was unveiled again on 9 May 1995, and the replica of the bust was made by Christos Mandzios, a Wrocław sculptor of Greek origin and professor at the Wrocław Academy of Fine Arts. On the pedestal, a fragment of the Ode to Joy was additionally carved in Polish and German: "All men shall be brothers".

Practical information

• Location: Szczytnicki Park in Wrocław
• The monument stands in the open space of the park, accessible at all times
• Nearby are also the Centennial Hall and the Japanese Garden