When strolling through the Potsdam Babelsberg area one can find many places of historical interest, including a square with a large memorial dedicated to the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

This may be strange as the Germans, nor the Soviets who controlled this part of Germany at the time had anything to do with the atomic bombs. However, just across the street from this location stands a house once home to President Truman for a short time during the 1945 Potsdam conference, and while peace was discussed here tragedy was planned elsewhere, as Truman gave the order for the deployment of the bombs while here.

The memorial was built in 2005 under the leadership of the Hiroshima-Platz e.V. association led by Hideto Sotobayashi, an eyewitness to the bombing.  

The piece was built under the purvey of the sculptor Makoto Fujiwara, who supervised the building of the monument by exchange students from the affected cities and local students. 

The text reads: “In memory of the victims of the atomic bombing on Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and August 9, 1945, During the Potsdam Conference of the Allied Great Powers from July 17 to August 2, 1945, the then President of the United States of America, Harry S. Truman, lived in the villa opposite.”