Maximus and History

Here is a rare photo of the restored Quadriga statue in East Berlin, Circa 1958.

The original statue was destroyed during the battle of Berlin in 1945. In 1957, the East and West Berlin magistrate's worked together to restore the Brandenburg Gate back to it's former glory. The quadriga statue was subsequently recast from a mold that was created in 1942, and it later sat dormant in the courtyard of the "Neuer Marstall ", a historic building located on the Schloßplatz in East Berlin. What's unique about this photo is that it still depicts the Quadriga with the Iron Cross, which was later removed by East German authorities.

The statue was subsequently restored to it's original location atop of the Brandenburg Gate later that year.

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2 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 144

Maximus and History

80 years ago today WW2 officially ended!

Below is a photo of Japanese Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu signing the Japanese instrument of surrender!

3 months ago | [YT] | 153

Maximus and History

Yesterday, on April 25, 2025 in Washington D.C at Arlington National Cemetery, the Russian embassy together with the U.S State Department celebrated the 80th anniversary of the meeting of American and Soviet troops on the Elbe river in Germany.

Russian military officers were present at the ceremony, as well as officers from Kazakhstan. They took a picture with American WWII veteran Frank Cohn who personally witnessed that historic moment with his own eyes. Diplomats from Tajikistan, Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Russia were among those at the ceremony.

I find it personally interesting that this event was allowed to happen. Most of you might not recall but since 2022, Russian officials were banned from laying flowers at the "Spirit of the Elbe" memorial plaque, perhaps this is sign that things are changing?

7 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 1,117

Maximus and History

Here is a picture of East German non-commissioned officers of "Panzer-Regiment No. 1" of the National People's Army. Most of the NCO's here hold the rank of "Unteroffizier" and "Feldwebel."

They swore an oath to defend their fatherland on April 30th, 1956.

8 months ago | [YT] | 2,142

Maximus and History

East German Police officers in formation at a parade in 1956.

In the background is a picture of East German president Wilhelm Pieck.

Note, the police officers are still wearing the traditional pre-war inspired shako (The GDR variant was slightly different and was made of plastic instead of leather like in pre-war models) and it was not phased out until the 1960s. They were also equipped with the WW2 era STG-44 assault rifle, officially adopted by the Wehrmacht in 1943.

8 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 2,829

Maximus and History

Parade and "Walking out" uniforms of the East German NVA in 1956.

The National People's Army was founded in 1956 and was the official armed forces of the German Democratic Republic until it's dissolution in 1990.

From left to right:
1. Parade uniform for a Major (Motorized infantry)
2. Winter parade uniform for a Oberstleutnant (Signal troops)
3. Walking out uniform for a Major (Artillery troops)

8 months ago | [YT] | 1,941

Maximus and History

ANNOUNCEMENT: On Saturday (March 29) I will be premiering a rare video of the 1984 Guard Changing Ceremony in East Berlin. This will be my 50,000 subscriber special!

Tune in at around 4 PM (UTC)

8 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 1,043

Maximus and History

Former East German General, Fritz Streletz, has passed away at the age of 98.

Fritz was born on September 28, 1926 in Silesia (During the Weimar Republic) and he passed away on March 24, 2025 after a long illness.

From 1941 to 1943 he went on to study in a preoperatory school for non-commissioned officers (Unteroffiziervorschule ) and then after graduating he served as an NCO within the Wehrmacht from 1944 up until his capture by Soviet troops in 1945. After the war ended, Fritz was kept in a Soviet POW camp and was released in October of 1948.

Shortly after being released, he joined the German People's Police (DVP) and worked his way through the ranks until he became a colonel in the "Barracked People's Police" in 1956. From 1959 to 1961 he studied in the General Staff Academy in the USSR and from 1961 to 1964 he served as the Chief of Staff in Military District III. On January 1, 1979, he was appointed deputy minister of national defense and chief of the Main Staff, and promoted to colonel general on October 7, 1979.

He was also Deputy Supreme Commander of the Warsaw Pact Armed Forces from 1979 to 1989.

8 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 2,937

Maximus and History

Hi everyone, I wanted to ask you all a question.

Would you like to see more East German footage, particularly of the guard changing ceremonies in front of the Neue Wache? I know I haven't been posting as much GDR related content, so I felt it would be appropriate to hear back from you all!

9 months ago | [YT] | 59

Maximus and History

Here's a stunning photo of musicians from the NVA Guard Regiment (Nr. 1) performing at a guard changing ceremony at the Neue Wache in September, 1975.

Note, that the National People's Army of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) was the last German Army to include bugles within the spielmannszug (The formation of drums & fifes) as part of the Musikkorps. The Bundeswehr has sadly abandoned this aspect of Prussian military music tradition, and as of today, their fife players are not equipped bugles (Signalhörner)

10 months ago | [YT] | 498