Infantrymen of the US First Army shake hands with Russian soldiers on the broken bridge over the Elbe after the link-up at Torgau, Germany. The US soldiers are (L-R): Pfc. John A Metzger, Delbert E Philpott, and Pvt. Thomas B Summers; all are from A Company, 271st Regiment. (Photo by Allan Jackson/Getty Images). 04-1945

Soldiers of the 70th division of the American 7th Army hold up a Nazi flag and a portrait of Adolf Hitler, taken during the World War II capture of Saarbrucken. (Photo by Horace Abrahams/Keystone/Getty Images). 22nd March 1945

A group of women wearing dresses representing flags of the Allied powers (left to right: the USA, France, Britain and the Soviet Union) outside the Eglise de la Madeleine on VE Day in Paris, 8th May 1945. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Costumed participants take a break during a traditional Perchtenlauf (Perchten parade) in Osterseeon near Munich, Germany, December 17, 2016. (Photo by Michaela Rehle/Reuters)

Even the powerhouse of Europe has its fair share of abandoned properties and empty shop fronts as seen in these pictures of decaying buildings in Germany. Photographer Daniel Barter, 30, from London traveled Berlin and the surrounding countryside to capture buildings in need of work on film. Far from being resplendent in vintage glory, the deserted music venues and crumbling hospitals are a shadow of their former selves. German eagle motifs flake off ceilings and concert halls designed for hundreds have not seen a show for years. Photo: Lung sanatorium. (Photo by Daniel Barter/Caters News)

Revellers take part in the traditional “Weiberfastnacht” (Women's Carnival) celebration in Mainz, Germany, February 4, 2016. Germany is celebrating its traditional carnival with tight security after assaults on women during New Year's Eve celebrations across the country. (Photo by Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters)

Ariadne Ioannou attends the CARS 2 Germany Premiere at the Mathaeser Filmpalast on July 28, 2011 in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Hannes Magerstaedt/Getty Images)

A jockey rides her horse on mud flats during the tideland race (Wadden Race) in Duhnen, Lower Saxony, Germany, July 12, 2015. (Photo by Fabian Bimmer/Reuters)