COVENTRY: German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Friday took part in a wreath-laying ceremony in Coventry. This central English city was heavily bombed by Germany’s air force during World War II.

The ceremony took place on the third and final day of a state visit to the United Kingdom, during which Steinmeier sought to bolster ties between the former foes as Europe attempts to unite amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.

“Today, the arch enemies of the past have become close friends,” Germany’s official head of state said in a speech to the British parliament on Thursday, where he referenced his upcoming Coventry visit.

“Today, we stand side by side. Not against each other, but rather with each other — for freedom, democracy and the values that define Europe.” The German president was accompanied by the Duke of Kent, first cousin of the late Queen Elizabeth II, for the ceremony at the ruins of Coventry Cathedral, which was mostly destroyed during a major bombing raid by the Luftwaffe.

World War II air raid

The raid on the night of November 14, 1940, was the single most concentrated attack on a British city in World War II, Coventry City Council said.

Codenamed Moonlight Sonata, it lasted for 11 hours and involved nearly 500 German bombers, destroyed over 43,000 homes as well as the cathedral, and killed at least 554 people.

Coventry was targeted because it was an important industrial centre for arms production at the time.

The city is twinned with two German cities, Kiel and Dresden, both of which were heavily bombed by Allied forces during the war.

“It was important to me during this state visit to have room for remembrance. And when one remembers the Second World War here in Britain, in the United Kingdom, one must do so in Coventry,” Steinmeier told German media at the cathedral’s ruins.

Published in Dawn, December 6th, 2025