After the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church was destroyed by a British bombing raid in World War II all that remained was its ruined tower.
自从在第二次世界大战中遭到英国的突袭轰炸之后,威廉皇帝纪念教堂所剩就只有一个被毁坏的钟塔了。
Built in 1895, the tower has remained a poignant reminder of the horrors of war, as well as being a symbol of West Berlin's determination and extraordinary post-war recovery. But now the gaunt and jagged tower is making news of another kind: Traffic vibration has caused its walls to crumble, with chunks threatening to fall off onto pedestrians below.
威廉皇帝纪念教堂的钟塔始建于1895年,如今提醒着人们莫要忘了战争的残酷和恐怖。同时,它也象征着西柏林的决心和德意志民族伟大的战后复兴。但如今,这座破旧不堪的钟塔还传达了异样的信息:往来车辆引起的震动使它的墙壁摇摇欲坠,墙壁的大块剥落甚至还危及到了下面行人的安全。
Earlier the church authorities put the cost of repairing its neo-Gothic facade at 3.5 million euros (US$5.1 million), but now due to continuing disintegration the cost has soared to 4.1 million euros.
早些时候,教会权力机关把这座钟塔的新哥特式的正面的修复成本定在350万欧元(510万美元)。但现在,鉴于这座钟塔的持续解体,修复成本已飙升至410万欧元。
Charles Jeffrey Gray, 85, a former British pilot who carried out bombing raids over Germany, was one of the first to call for the rescue of Berlin's most famous wartime ruin, contributing US$930 to help spur the campaign. Since then donations have flooded in, with the Berlin city government pledging 1.5 million euros to the repair fund.
85岁的查尔斯•杰弗里•格雷是当初轰炸德国的英国前飞行员之一。他是最早号召人们修复柏林这个最有名的战争废墟的人中的一员。为了推动这项修复运动的开展,他捐献了930美元。随着捐款越来越多,柏林市政府投入了150万欧元的修缮资金。
Gray's last bombing raid over Berlin was in February 1944. Around that time 500 to 700 planes were involved in raids over Germany, a reprisal for earlier nightly operations over London by German bombers.
格雷对柏林的最后一次轰炸是在1944年的2月。当时大约有500至700架飞机参与了对德国的袭击,以报复之前德国轰炸机对伦敦的夜间轰炸。
"The tower must remain as a reminder for future generations of the horror of war," Gray said.
“这座钟塔必须保存下来,警示后人不要忘了战争的恐怖。”格雷这样说。