Kniefall von Warschau

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Kniefall von Warschau (lit. 'Warsaw kneeling' or 'Warsaw kneel'), also referred to as Warschauer Kniefall, refers to West German chancellor Willy Brandt's gesture of kneeling before a memorial to the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising during a state visit to Poland in 1970. Perceived as a sign of profound humility, images of Brandt's action received widespread media attention. More broadly, the gesture came to symbolise Ostpolitik, Brandt's ultimately successful policy of diplomatically reconciling West Germany with its eastern neighbours following the Holocaust and the Second World War, while improving Germany's international standing by proving that a different, peaceful Germany was possible.

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