When 22 women from across Germany went head to head February 24 to take home the coveted Miss Germany crown, they followed in the high-heeled footsteps of decades of ladies before them.
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A century of beautiful German women
Beauty queens have been crowned in Germany for nearly a century, although the definition of beauty has evolved significantly over that period of time. Here's a look back at some of Germany's most attractive women.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Gollnow
1927: The first Miss Germany
The Miss Germany contest was founded in 1927. Winner Hildegard Kwandt, 21, was crowned with a wreath of flowers in Berlin's Sportpalast venue. The jury was made up of well-known, respected men from Berlin, including filmmaker Fritz Lang and sculptor Ernesto de Fiori.
Image: Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1977-062-16
1931: Daisy d'Ora, nobility in disguise
In 1931, 18-year-old Daisy von Freyberg became Miss Germany. She was an actress and had played in the 1929 box office hit "Pandora's Box." She belonged to a noble family, but it wasn't considered appropriate at the time for nobility to work in the entertainment industry, which is why she took the pseudonym Daisy d'Ora. She passed away in June 2010 at the age of 96.
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1950: Susanne Erichsen, post-war icon
The first Miss Germany pageant after World War II was held in 1950 and won by Susanne Erichsen. The Berlin model later immigrated to the US and was seen as the epitome of the post-war German woman: young, attractive, modern and confident. She embodied German society's return to Western fashion and consumerism after years of dearth.
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1956: Petra Schürmann on the global stage
In 1956 in London, Petra Schürmann became the first German to win the Miss World contest, although she'd only come in third in the Miss Germany pageant. The prize gave a boost to her career as a TV presenter, model and actor. In 2001, her daughter was killed in a tragic car accident. After that, Schürmann largely avoided the public eye. She passed away in 2010 at the age of 76.
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1957: Gerti Daub, the German Grace Kelly
In Baden-Baden in 1957, Gerti Daub received the Miss Germany crown. In the post-war and pre-waif period, 85-54-95 centimeters were still considered ideal measurements for a woman. Daub took third in the Miss Europe contest and fifth in the Miss Universe pageant in California. The Hamburg native remained a beauty icon into the 1950s and was considered to be Germany's Grace Kelly.
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1991: First short-haired Miss Germany
In 1991, Ines Kuba became the first Miss Germany to wear her hair short. She is pictured here with Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher at the annual Press Ball in Berlin. Kuba later supported Helmut Kohl in his election campaign in 1998, which he lost. Growing up in East Germany, she wanted to become a pre-school teacher or aerobics trainer, but later worked for the Miss Germany Corporation.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Altwein
1993: Verona Pooth, the making of a star
Known then by her maiden name Feldbusch, Verona Pooth's breakthrough came in 1993 when she won the Miss Germany contest. The same year, she was also crowned Miss Intercontinental World, and in 1995 she also became Miss American Dream. Together with Petra Schürmann, she remains one of the most famous former Misses and has since enjoyed an extensive advertising and television career.
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2016: Lena Bröder, the Catholic beauty
Miss Germany 2016 is Lena Bröder. The 27-year-old is studying to be a religion teacher. During her year at Miss Germany, she met Pope Francis and published a book called "Das Schöne in mir - Mit Glaube zum Erfolg" (The beauty in me - How religion can bring success).
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2017: Soraya Kohlmann, Miss Germany 2017
Eighteen-year-old student Soraya Kohlmann has been crowned "Miss Germany" for 2017. The blonde beauty beat out 20 other competitors to claim the title. "I hope to represent Germany with warmth and honesty," Kohlmann said after her victory.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/P. Seeger
2018: Anahita Rehbein ready to hug the world
Anahita Rehbein, a 23-year-old student, has been crowned Miss Germany. "I could hug the whole world," she said after coming out ahead of the other 21 competitors. "It is a dream come true for me," she said.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Gollnow
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The first beauty pageant in Germany in what was then the German Empire — was held in 1909. The title at stake was no less than Miss Universe. Even at that time, there were scandals and chick wars — not unlike what we see today in Heidi Klum's casting show "Germany's Next Top Model."
Gertrud Dopieralski's competitors poured alcohol into her makeup since she was buddy-buddy with the organizers - but that didn't keep her from winning nevertheless.
In the early 20th century, the hourglass shape was considered ideal. It wasn't until the 1920s that hair and skirts got shorter and women even starting drinking alcohol in public (gasp!). In 1927, Hildegard Kwandt won the first official Miss Germany pageant — chosen by a jury that included no less than "Metropolis" filmmaker Fritz Lang.
In the Weimar Republic (1918-1933), the pageants boomed and women saw them as a sign of emancipation. At the very least, they were a ticket abroad, since German organizers would send their winners to international contests in Europe or the US.
Beauty pageant ban
Starting in 1933, the Nazis prohibited beauty pageants. After the war, the first Miss contests started taking place in 1948, but it wasn't until 1950 that the first Miss Germany pageant was held — in West Germany. In communist East Germany, the ban was upheld.
After years of shortages and suffering, being too thin was a sign of poverty and curves were in. Miss Germany winners were not only admired around the country for their elegance and beauty, but were also expected to represent Germany abroad. Germany was not only rebuilding its cities, but also its international image.
Later, in the 1970s, amidst the sexual revolution and rise of feminism, protests against the pageants grew louder and public interest waned.
Career booster
That changed, however, in 1979, when the Miss Germany pageant was broadcast on television for the first time, on Rudi Carrell's show "Am laufenden Band." In the 80s, the contest regained its popularity.
The re-found significance of the Miss Germany title paved the way for 1990 winner Verona Pooth to use it as a spring board for her extensive public career. She went on to host TV shows, including the erotic program "Peep!," and became a well recognized face in German films and advertisements.
Around that time, supermodels like Kate Moss or Victoria Secret's Adriana Lima of Brazil introduced the controversial waif look, which would impact beauty ideals for decades to come and has just recently started seeing a backlash. Women strove to become as thin as possible.
Since 2000, the Miss Germany Corporation in Oldenburg has been the sole organizer of the pageant (and has also managed to establish the Mister Germany brand). The winners of the contests receive numerous prizes and benefits, including trips, discounts and a car for a year. In return, they sign a 12-month contract with the Corporation for 12 months.
While our image of ideal beauty has evolved for better or worse over the past century, the Miss Germany pageant has remained a constant and proven to be a springboard for quite a few major careers in modeling, TV or business.
