---
title: "Which came first, Germany or the Statue of Liberty?"
description: "Germany vs the Statue of Liberty: Germany came first, by 15 years — 1871 against 1886. What happened in each case, and why the dates are often given differently."
url: https://atoneplace.net/which-came-first/germany-vs-statue-of-liberty/
site: "At One Place"
---

# Which came first, Germany or the Statue of Liberty?

**Which came first, Germany or the Statue of Liberty?: Germany**

1871 — 15 years before the Statue of Liberty

Germany came first, by 15 years. The German Empire was proclaimed at Versailles.

## Side by side

|  | Germany | the Statue of Liberty |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Year | 1871 | 1886 |
| Date | 1871-01-18 | 1886-10-28 |
| Category | country | landmark |
| What happened | The German Empire was proclaimed at Versailles. | The statue was dedicated in New York Harbor. |

## Germany

Germany as a unified state dates from 1871, which makes it younger than the United States, Canada, Italy and the bicycle. It then ceased to exist as a single state in 1949 and was reunified on 3 October 1990, so the current Federal Republic in its present borders is younger than the personal computer. Nintendo, founded in 1889, is older than most people's mental image of Germany allows.

## the Statue of Liberty

Dedicated in October 1886, the statue predates the Eiffel Tower by two and a half years — and its internal iron framework was designed by Gustave Eiffel, who went on to use what he learned on the tower. It arrived from France in 214 crates and the American side had to raise the money for the pedestal by public subscription, which nearly failed. The copper skin is about 2.4 mm thick, roughly the thickness of two pennies.

## Common questions

### Which came first, Germany or the Statue of Liberty?

Germany, by 15 years — 1871 against 1886.

### When did Germany start?

1871. The German Empire was proclaimed at Versailles.

### When did the Statue of Liberty start?

1886. The statue was dedicated in New York Harbor.

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## Sources

- Wikidata — Wikimedia Foundation (https://www.wikidata.org/) [CC0 1.0]