The German Review

The German Review

Germany's retirement home for failed politicians

The country's ceremonial presidency is an expensive consolation prize for politicians who never quite made it to the top.

Jörg Luyken's avatar
Jörg Luyken
Nov 11, 2026
∙ Paid

Dear Reader,

Not so long ago I played in a pipe band in Berlin. On Tuesdays after work, we would meet to practise in the Tiergarten park, just across the street from Bellevue Palace, the residence of the German president.

Those music sessions gave me a chance to observe just how interested the general public were in the German head of state. Bellevue is o…

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