Freedom Bell (German: Freiheitsglocke) is a bell located in Berlin, Germany, given as a gift from Americans to the city of Berlin in 1950 as a symbol of anti-communism during the Cold War. It was inspired by the American Liberty Bell. Since 1950, the bell has been housed in the tower of Rathaus Schöneberg (Schöneberg Town Hall), the former city hall of West Berlin.
Origins and Installation
The initiative to give Berlin such a bell was undertaken by the Crusade for Freedom, a propaganda campaign sponsored by the National Committee for a Free Europe, the organization that operated Radio Free Europe. The campaign was launched by U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower on Labor Day, 1950, with General Lucius D. Clay—later known as the "father of the Berlin Airlift"—as its chairman. The stated purpose was to offer all Americans an opportunity to participate in a demonstration of the "free world's determination to resist Communist aggression." The bell was conceived by Abbott Washburn and Nate Crabtree and designed by Walter Dorwin Teague.
The 10-ton bell was cast at the British bell foundry of Gillett & Johnston. It arrived to a ticker-tape parade in New York City and carries the inscription: "That this world under God shall have a new birth of freedom" (a quotation from Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address). The bell subsequently visited 26 American cities, and people in every state were encouraged to sign a "Declaration of Freedom." Approximately 16 million signatures from American citizens were collected and are enshrined in Berlin alongside the bell.
The bell was permanently installed in the West Berlin city hall on United Nations Day, October 24, 1950. More than 400,000 Berliners filled the square before the city hall (now John-F.-Kennedy-Platz) to witness the dedication. General Clay gave a speech and pushed the button that started the bell ringing. Its tones were heard throughout East Berlin and into East Germany. The East German Socialist Unity Party (SED) denounced the bell as a "war bell," a "hunger bell," and a "death bell." SED central committee member Hans Jendretzky warned: "The rope of the death bell will become the gallows rope for those who ring it."
Governing Mayor of West Berlin Ernst Reuter (SPD) declared that Germany "will never rest or relax until freedom will shine over the countries of Eastern Europe that are at present forced to live in slavery."
Occasions for Ringing
The bell is rung daily for five minutes at noon, and at midnight on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. A recording of the ringing was broadcast by RIAS (Rundfunk im amerikanischen Sektor), the American radio station in West Berlin, every Sunday just before noon. These broadcasts have been continued by RIAS's successor, Deutschlandfunk Kultur. In the radio broadcasts, the ringing is followed by an excerpt from the text of the "Declaration of Freedom" in German.
The bell has also been rung on several special occasions: the 1953 uprising in East Germany (June 17), the 1956 Hungarian Uprising, the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, the reunification of Germany in 1990, and following the September 11, 2001 attacks, when thousands of Berlin citizens gathered at John-F.-Kennedy-Platz.
Other Uses of the Name
Freedom Bell, American Legion is a separate public artwork located at Union Station in Washington, D.C., United States. It is a 2:1 scale replica of the Liberty Bell, cast in bronze in 1975 by Petit & Fritsen, weighing 8 tons. It was commissioned by the American Legion as a Bicentennial gift and traveled to all 48 contiguous states aboard the American Freedom Train from April 1975 to December 1976. It was permanently installed at Union Station in 1981. The bell is owned by the National Park Service.
