SUTTON Travels: Berlin

Showing posts with label Berlin. Show all posts

25 October 2024

Checkpoint Charlie Berlin Germany

Checkpoint Charlie is a symbol of the Cold War period (1945 - 1991) when East and West Berlin were separated. The American sector was on the West side and the Soviet sector on the East side.

The American guard house is a popular tourist attraction. The name Charlie refers to border crossing checkpoint "C."

The checkpoint is the location of the Berlin Crisis in 1961 when US and Soviet tanks faced off against each other on either side of the border. The border wall was erected in 1961.

The site has been featured in several films:

1983 Octopussy (A James Bond film)

1965 The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (Richard Burton, Claire Bloom)

2015 Bridge of Spies (Tom Hanks)

2015 The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

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Geoffrey W. Sutton has a PhD in psychology and writes about psychology and culture.

Website: https://www.suttong.com/

Amazon Author: https://author.amazon.com/home

ResearchGate page: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Geoffrey-Sutton-2

Academia Page: https://evangel.academia.edu/GeoffSutton

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Google Map showing the location of the checkpoint and the related museum nearby.

Wilhelmstrasse 81-85 Berlin Germany

Wilhelmstrasse is a street of historic importance and a name that represented the German government until 1945.

The massive building pictured above housed the Reich Air Ministry headed by Reichsmarschall Hermann Goring who ordered its construction, which took place between 1935 and 1936.

You have to gain some distance from the structure to appreciate its size. It has 2,800 rooms and 7 kilometres of hallways.

Although Berlin was decimated by allied bombing during World War II, this building survived.

Google Map

The 3-D setting on Google maps offers a sense of the size of the building compared to others.

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Geoffrey W. Sutton has a PhD in psychology and writes about psychology and culture.

Website: https://www.suttong.com/

Amazon Author: https://author.amazon.com/home

ResearchGate page: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Geoffrey-Sutton-2

Academia Page: https://evangel.academia.edu/GeoffSutton

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23 October 2024

Hitler's Bunker Berlin Germany

Hitler’s bunker, known as the Führerbunker, was an air raid shelter located near the Reich Chancellery in Berlin. It was part of a larger subterranean bunker complex constructed in two phases, in 1936 and 1944. This bunker served as Hitler’s final headquarters during the last months of World War II.

The Führerbunker was heavily fortified, with walls and ceilings made of thick concrete to withstand bomb attacks. It contained about 30 rooms, including living quarters, conference rooms, and support facilities. Hitler moved into the bunker on January 16, 1945, and it became the centre of the Nazi regime until the end of the war.

In the bunker, Hitler married Eva Braun on April 29, 1945, and they both committed suicide the following day. The bunker was largely destroyed after the war, and the site remained unmarked until 2006, when a small plaque was installed.

The images below show a sketch of the bunker and the sketch overlaid on the current site.

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Geoffrey W. Sutton has a PhD in psychology and writes about psychology and culture.

Website: https://www.suttong.com/

Amazon Author: https://author.amazon.com/home

ResearchGate page: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Geoffrey-Sutton-2

Academia Page: https://evangel.academia.edu/GeoffSutton

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Topographies Des Terror Berlin Germany

The Topography of Terror is a significant historical museum in Berlin, Germany, located on Niederkirchnerstrasse. This site was once the headquarters of the Gestapo and SS during the Nazi regime from 1933 to 194512. The buildings were largely destroyed during World War II, and the area was later transformed into a museum and memorial.

The museum features both indoor and outdoor exhibits that document the history of the Nazi terror apparatus, including the Reich Security Main Office and the Sicherheitspolizei. The permanent exhibitions focus on the central institutions of the SS and police, detailing the crimes they committed throughout Europe. Additionally, the site includes remnants of the Berlin Wall, adding another layer of historical significance.

In 2024, entry to the museum was free. The main exhibit is a tour of Nazi terror told through large storyboards in German and English.

The terror story begins in 1933.