Division of the evangelical synod

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The evangelical church is fighting against moves to divide its diocese which still encompasses the whole of Berlin. In February 1966 Kurt Scharf is appointed as the new bishop. However, he cannot visit his East Berlin parishes, as he is refused access to East Berlin. Instead, he retains informal ties to Christians in the East.

Meinhard Schröder, then a theology student, talks about his connections with Christians in the East.

locations

Marienkirche (Berlin-Ost)

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1

latitude
52.52067334

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13.40673208
Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche (Berlin-West)

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1

latitude
52.50486892

longitude
13.334677202

date

1966
Animal airlift

Foot-and-mouth disease is raging across the Federal Republic. As a result, East Berlin has banned the transportation of animals through the GDR, meaning they must be flown in to the city.

Everyday Life, West

00:40
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1966
Deadbeats at the Church of Remembrance

Young people are lazing around the Church of Remembrance and getting Berliners hot under their collars. They have long hair and are known as deadbeats. These young people are trying out a new way of living that goes beyond merely working and consuming. Meinhard Schröder looks back at those times. He believes that a lot of born-and-bred West Berliners had forgotten how to think and a Wall had formed in their heads. Meinhard recalls one of the standard arguments back then: "Why don't you just go over to the East?"

Contemporary Witnesses, Everyday Life, West

01:44
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1965
Beatlemania and the Rolling Stones

Young people are crazy about the Beatles and not just because of their music - much to the bemusement of many older Berliners. The Rolling Stones give a legendary concert in the West Berlin venue, the Waldbühne. The fans leave a trail of destruction in their wake. East Berlin quickly uses the incident in its propaganda war against the West, classifying beat music as a decadent, Western influence and banning numerous bands.

Culture, West, East

01:47
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1965
Studio at the Barbed Wire

West Berlin's authorities mount illuminated display boards on the GSW housing association high-rise near the Wall in an attempt to provide East Berliners with news from the West. The Studio at the Barbed Wire was launched by the Berlin Senate in 1961 in cooperation with the American sector's radio station, RIAS Berlin: their goal is to provide information and news across the Wall in response to the propaganda blaring out of the GDR's speaker vans. This sparks a conflict dubbed the "speaker war", which does not end until October 1965. Wolfgang Göbel was responsible for designing the display boards on the GSW housing association high-rise back then.

Border, Contemporary Witnesses, Politics, West, East

01:54
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1965
Escaping in a Cadillac

The Wall is becoming harder to cross by the day. Despite all the risks involved, there are still people who are desperate to flee to the West and people willing to help them escape. Burkhart Veigel, a medicine student at the time, has worked as an escape helper since 1961. Together with other helpers, he enables 650 people to get from East to West, making him one of the most successful helpers. As well as digging tunnels, he also converts cars into escape vehicles. The most well-known: the converted Cadillac, which allowed many people to escape, hidden behind the dashboard.

Border, Escaping, Contemporary Witnesses, West, East

01:31
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1966
Shopping centre opens in Lichtenberg

In April 1966, the GDR's most modern shopping centre opens in the East Berlin district of Lichtenberg. Manfred Lauchardt recalls how the GDR's popular WM66 washing machine was not only used in East German households, but also came in handy on Berlin's Alexanderplatz to keep sausages warm.

Everyday Life, East

01:08
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1966
Soviet plane crashes into Stößensee

A Soviet plane crashes into Stößensee. Apart from the pilots, no one is hurt and a disaster is narrowly avoided on West Berlin's densely populated Heerstrasse. A plaque on Stößensee bridge commemorates the fighter jet crash: "On 6 April 1966, Soviet pilots Captain Boris Vladimirovich Kapustin and Lieutenant Yuri Nikolayevich Yanov steered their faulty aircraft into Stößensee, losing their lives in the crash. Thanks to their selfless act, they avoided an unforeseeable disaster in the nearby residential area. This plaque honours the sacrifice made by the Soviet soldiers as a symbol of humanity in the midst of the Cold War."

Politics, West

01:36
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1966
Military parade to mark the 5th anniversary of the Wall

The SED party leaders hold a grand military parade to celebrate the 5th anniversary of the closing of the border. The Western allies view the military parade as a violation of the Four Power agreements. However, head of state and Party leader Walter Ulbricht claims to have secured peace by building the Wall in 1961. West Berlin's mayor, Willy Brandt, declares that the Wall will come down, but only as part of more widespread changes. Manfred Lauchardt witnessed events first-hand back then. He recalls how many of the East Berliners who lined the streets did so more out of duty than conviction.

Contemporary Witnesses, Politics, East

01:06
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1967
Kommune 1 and the extraparliamentary opposition

In January 1967 Fritz Teufel and almost a dozen other students found the living community Kommune Eins in West Berlin. It has emerged from the APO, the student movement's extraparliamentary opposition. The students aim for nothing less than revolutionising the way they live and love. How they'll achieve this is still unclear. Their attempts to explore an alternative model to the conservative society of the day shock ordinary citizens. "Kommune 1" hits the headlines with its plans to carry out a "pudding assassination" on US Vice-President Humphrey, who visits West Berlin in April 1967. German student Detlef Michel was one of the original communards.

Contemporary Witnesses, Everyday Life, Politics, Opposition, West

02:37
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1967
Haute couture and miniskirts

Fourteen Berlin fashion houses showcase their collections in Paris, Tel Aviv, Moscow and at the World Fair in Montreal. The miniskirt is all the rage in Berlin.

Everyday Life, Culture, West

00:50
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June 1979
Authors banned

The East Berlin authors’ association joins forces with the SED leadership, the Stasi and the Ministry of Culture to convene a tribunal against nine problematic authors. Among those on trial are famous names like Stefan Heym, Klaus Schlesinger and Rolf Schneider. The group stands accused of “defaming the GDR, the SED, its cultural policy and its legal system”, and of having “put themselves at the service of anti-communist forces working against the GDR”. Of the 400 authors present, 350 vote in favour of ousting their colleagues from the association. That means the nine can no longer work, because only authors who are members of the association can publish in the GDR. Rolf Schneider talks about what it was like to have his livelihood taken away.

Contemporary Witnesses, Opposition, Culture, East

02:06
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May 1971
Centrum Warenhaus on Alexanderplatz

The Centrum Warenhaus on Alexanderplatz is the shopping Mecca of East Germany. It opens its doors in 1970. Sales assistant, Gert Roth, is there from day one. He recalls the store's beginnings and special promotional offers. When Erich Honecker enters office, he not only promises flats, stable prices and a better supply of goods. He also "treats" GDR citizens to 150,000 pairs of blue jeans, a product imported from the West. This much-coveted item of clothing is only available at the Centrum Warenhaus on Alexanderplatz.

Contemporary Witnesses, Everyday Life, East

01:19
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1990
West Berliners head East

In 1990, West Berliners surprise everyone by queuing up to change their money into Eastern marks. They’re using them to go bargain hunting in East Berlin. The most popular destination is the department store on Alexanderplatz.

Everyday Life, West, East

00:49
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June 01, 1968
Prague Spring

East Berlin in the early summer of nineteen sixty-eight. Alexanderplatz is a huge building site: socialism is getting a makeover and the GDR capital is set to become a modern showcase of the Republic. In June 1968 18-year-old Toni Krahl, who will later front the rock band City, travels to Prague and is impressed by what he finds there: "socialism with a human face". However, on 21 August 1968 half a million soldiers from the Warsaw Pact countries invade the CSSR, crushing the Prague Spring. The authorities in East Berlin welcome the intervention and convict 1,200 people who take to the streets in protest, including Toni Krahl.

Contemporary Witnesses, Politics, Opposition, East

04:00
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May 18, 1976
9th SED conference: cementing the divide

As well as increasing social spending, the 9th SED party conference (18-22 May 1976) also agrees a new manifesto. Designed to cement the GDR’s ideological separation from the West, the document does away with any mention of German unity.

Politics, East

00:37
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1969
The GDR's 20th anniversary

Presents to celebrate the Republic's birthday: the World Time Clock and the TV Tower on Alexanderplatz – at 368 metres, it is still Germany's tallest building today.

Contemporary Witnesses, Everyday Life, East

01:36
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1987
Renovating East Berlin

As part of the preparations for the city's 750th anniversary, East Berlin decides to thoroughly renovate some of its most important buildings, including the Friedrichswerde Church and the French Cathedral on Gendarmenmarkt square. It also gets to work on the Nikolai Quarter and Sophienstrasse, a street filled with historic workshops. Kristina Laduch was an architect for the city at the time. She talks about what it was like working on the Sophienstrasse project.

Contemporary Witnesses, Everyday Life, East

02:10
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1963
The new heart of East Berlin at Alexanderplatz

The new heart of East Berlin is taking shape around Alexanderplatz: Kino International and Café Moskau are almost complete. The café will treat its guests to original Russian dishes. Modern residential areas are also under construction in East Berlin, aiming to bring living standards up to the level of the West.

Everyday Life, Culture, East

01:21
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July 01, 1990
Monetary union: Western marks for all

The economic, monetary and social union of West Germany and the GDR comes into force on 1 July 1990. The changes spell the end of the Eastern mark. GDR citizens finally have access to the Western mark, a long-time symbol of West German prosperity. Adults can change up to 4,000 Eastern marks at a rate of 1:1. For pensioners the maximum is 6,000. Savings in excess of those limits will be changed at a rate of 2:1. Wages and pensions are converted 1:1, and debts are halved. Brigitte Wnuck von Lipinski, landlady of Gittis Bierbar in Mitte, talks about the night before GDR money went out of circulation.

Contemporary Witnesses, Politics, West, East

01:53
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October 18, 1989
Honecker steps down

After leading the SED for 18 years, Erich Honecker steps down on 18 November 1989. His successor is Egon Krenz, 25 years Honecker’s junior. Krenz will only spend a few weeks in power. Honecker flees to Moscow in 1991. The following year he is charged with manslaughter in Berlin in connection with the deaths of those who were shot and killed at the Wall. The case is dropped after Honecker’s lawyers complain to the Berlin Constitutional Court. In 1993 Honecker emigrates to Chile, where he dies a year later at the age of 81.

Politics, East

00:33
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