In 1913, Imperial Germany completed the Völkerschlachtdenkmal on the centennial of the Battle of Leipzig. This concrete and granite building was part of Imperial Germany's bid to celebrate Germany's role in vanquishing Napoleon (ignoring how many Germans fought for Napoleon at Leipzig). Although it celebrated all the coalition in theory, its motifs were distinctly German and the Kaiser's speech at the commemoration was rather bombastic.

The centennial of Waterloo coincided with the war, so celebrations of the battle often involved diplomatic gestures between the British and French and the German press grousing that Wellington had written out Blucher's victory at Belle-Alliance (which is what Germans increasingly called Waterloo).