Juliusturm

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Namesake of the phrase:
The Juliusturm at the Spandau Citadel

The surplus of the federal budget accumulated in the Federal Republic of Germany in the years 1953–1957 was referred to as the Juliusturm .

A full treasury is often referred to as the "Juliusturm". This phrase refers to an approx. 32 meter high defense tower of the Spandau Citadel in the Berlin district of Haselhorst . The naming is not clear: On the one hand, the name could be due to a visit by Duke Julius von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel (1528–1589). On the other hand, in 1356 , Margrave Ludwig the Romans gave his valet Fritz the Thurm office of Spandau. Since Fritz was a Jew , the tower was henceforth called the Judenturm . The name Juliusturm , as it has been called since 1400, could have developed from this designation .

In the 19th century the Juliusturm became a household name throughout Germany. After the Franco-Prussian War (1870/1871), defeated France had to pay Germany a war indemnity of five billion francs (around 4.5 billion marks ; about three times the cash in Germany at the time). Part of this Reich War Treasure, 120 million marks (adjusted for purchasing power in today's currency: around 483.9 million euros ) in minted gold, was stored in the Juliusturm until 1914. For financial politicians, the building has become synonymous with a surplus of the state coffers.

Since 1945, only one finance minister has managed to save a “Juliusturm”: under the Adenauer government , Fritz Schäffer managed to put eight billion DM (today: around 19.5 billion euros ) on the “ high edge ”.

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