Berlin, 9 November 2025 (dpa/MIA) - German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier hosts a ceremony on Sunday to mark the pivotal events of November 9 in German history — the proclamation of the republic in 1918, the Nazi pogroms of 1938 against Jews, and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.

Steinmeier is set to deliver a speech at his Bellevue Palace residence in Berlin focused on safeguarding Germany’s democracy, according to the event announcement.

The president’s office said November 9 "reflects both the dawn of democracy and freedom, and the horrors of tyranny and anti-Semitism."

It added that understanding "moments of courage and humanity, as well as the abyss of dictatorship and the destruction of human dignity, holds important lessons for the present."

November 9 holds a unique place in Germany’s collective memory.

In 1918, the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm II paved the way for the proclamation of the republic; in 1938, the Nazi regime unleashed nationwide attacks that marked the start of the systematic killing of Jews and a sharp increase in their persecution; and in 1989, the fall of the Berlin Wall signalled the end of Germany's division and the start of reunification.

Photo: archive