SCHEFFLER 1998, the Kaiser in Baalbek, BTS 69.Pdf
The Kaiser in Baalbek: Tourism, archaeology, and the politics of imagination Thomas Scheffler1 “Guillaume II a le sens de la représentation. II voit, dans les actes de sa fonction imperiale auxquels il donne une solennité laborieusement calculée, l’expression d’un symbolisme à la fois mystique et brutal, propre à enthusiasmer non seulement ses sujets, mais les historiens et les philosophes.”2 1. Introduction On October 11, 1898, the German Emperor Wilhelm II left his residence in Potsdam for a six-weeks journey that was to ●●● First published in: Hélène lead him to Constantinople, Jerusalem, Beirut, Sader, Thomas Scheffler, Damascus, and Baalbek. Contemporary observ- and Angelika Neuwirth ers were impressed by the size and splendor (eds.), Baalbek: Image and displayed by the Imperial travel party. On its Monument 1898-1998, way from Haifa to Jerusalem, 230 tents, 100 Beirut: Orient-Institut der coaches, 12 large baggage wagons, 1.300 horses Deutschen Morgenländi- schen Gesellschaft (= Bei- and mules, 100 coachmen, 600 drovers, 6 chief ruter Texte und Studien; cooks, 6 assistant cooks, 60 waiters, 10 guides, vol. 69), 1998, pp. 13-49. and 12 dragomans were barely enough for the Online edition 2013. needs of the Kaiser’s court (Turkish hosts and | Numbers between verti- guards not included). 30 additional carriages cal lines refer to the pages and 95 horses had to be provided by the Sultan. of the first edition. | Together with the Ottoman dignitaries and ●●● tho usands of Turkish troops that accompanied the procession, the length of the Imperial caravan on its way to Jerusalem was said to have reached that of a mobilized division.3 |14| A puzzling blend of contradictory impressions was conveyed to the public: Although the whole event was designed to emphasize the national presence of Germany in the Middle East, most of the Kaiser’s itinerary in 1 The author is indebted to Margarete van Ess, Ernst Haiger and Gerhard Höpp for valua- ble comments and research assistance.
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