Ottawa is reckoned to be one favorite place for museum lovers because there are just so many museums to choose from. Be it Canadian history, priceless art pieces, artifacts, dinosaur bones, totem poles, science & technology, agriculture, aviation..... You name it and they have it.
Of all the museums, we had no clue initially why the tour company had chosen Canadian War Museum for us to visit for our tour to Ottawa. In the end, we figured out. It's an automobile that he liked us to see - a car that was once used by Adolf Hitler. Who could ever imagine that Hitler's car could end up in Ottawa!
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The automobile is a Grosser Mercedes 770 W 150 which the German car maker, Daimer Benz produced between 1938 and 1943. This is the armoured version weighing 4.1tons. It was powered by a 230-horsepower engine which could produce speeds between 145 to 150km/hr. The windows were 2.5cm (one inch) thick bullet-proof glass and a 0.6cm thick armoured plate which can be raised behind the rear passenger seat. There are separate front seats for a driver and a passenger and a bench-styled rear passenger seat. In addition, immediately behind the front seats are three foldable seats to hold additional passengers.
The car was first captured by the Americans in May 1945 and later shipped to the US in August, the same year. After being kept in storage for nine years, it was put up for auction in October 1956. It was acquired by H.J. O'Connell. The car was eventually acquired by the Canadian War Museum in May 1970.
Display of an item so closely associated with a person like Adolf Hitler has not been problem free for the museum. The images of adulating crowds and military parades behind the displayed item had not been well received by some visitors. To counter the criticism of glamorizing the Nazi regime, the museum had also put up photographs from dead camps to emphasize the horrific consequences of Hitler's policy and Nazism. In the end, to placate the negative impact, the automobile, which is liked any other normal car is being captioned "A Symbol of Evil".
The display of this item though was with the good intention of educating the public about the evil of Nazism and dictatorship, the benefit to the museum in terms of the revenue derived from the many visitors is still controversial.
A parallel can be made with Qin Shi Huang of China who was credited for the construction of the bulk of the Great Wall of China. He was considered cruel and ruthless hegemon and expansionist similar to Hitler. Yet his master piece is now a world heritage and it is earning massive amount of tourist-money for China. History has also been re-written - Qin Shi Huang was a great leader who unified China and set the foundation for a great China today! Funny how history can be perceived differently over time!
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