Berlin Battle Damage
@BerlinBDamage
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Companion to Berlin Battle Damage FB page. Tweeting all things WW2 Berlin related.
Berlin, Germany
Joined November 2021
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Today I hosted my first World War 2 walking tour of Berlin. It was an absolute blast and I met some lovely people from all corners of the globe. I’ll definitely be doing this again. I’ve found my new career.
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In August 1945 the celebrated photo journalist Robert Capa took this photo of the Humboldthain Flak Tower while on assignment for Life magazine. 12.8cm and 2cm Flak guns were still in place and the damage from Soviet shells clear to see. Today I was able to match Capa’s photo.
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5000 followers as of today. Thank you all for your support and comments. I will keep the content coming, and there’s plenty of it. This is a good time to mention that I’ll be running the second walking tour on 15th October. DM if interested. More details on the FB page.
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Reminders of the fierce combat that took place along the Alte Oder, East of Seelöw, in the two months leading up to the Soviet assault on Berlin which began on 16th April 1945.
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The village of Reitwein, just West of the Oder was taken by the Soviets in Feb 45. It still bears the scars of battle. High in the nearby forest, overlooking the Seelow heights, the the observation post of Chuikov and Zhukov,can still be found.
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Nature reclaiming a bombed out villa in Steglitz that has lain untouched since March 24th 1944.
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On this day in 1943, members of the White Rose resistance group, Hans Scholl, Sophie Scholl and Christoph Probst were executed by guillotine for distributing leaflets denouncing the Nazi regime. Fascism is on the rise again. Never forget them.
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Yorckstraße might not look much but it’s steeped in history. The concrete bases around the bridge supports were put there in WW2 to stop the bridges lifting from bomb shockwaves. Shrapnel and shell holes are everywhere. The signage says that this bridge was last painted in 1941.
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Stug IV ammunition carrier abandoned on Charlottenburger Chaussee, now Straße des 17 Juni, May 1945. The Siegessäule can be seen in the background.
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Yorckstraße S Bahn station looks like a nondescript postwar building, but today I found out that it’s not postwar at all. Sneak past the barrier to the right of the exit and the wall is plastered in shrapnel or bullet damage. The legacy of April 1945.
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Schmidt-Knobelsdorf-Kaserne, Spandau, Wehrmacht recruits enlisting early in WW2, and the barracks today.
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Some dramatic battle damage found in Pankow and Heinersdorf today. The Soviets faced stiff resistance as they moved into Berlin from the East and these bullet and shell riddled buildings are testament to the violent combat that took place in these quiet residential streets.
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The Stadtbahn railway viaduct runs East from Friedrichstraße station along the Northern side of Georgenstraße. In 1945 it formed part of the central Berlin defence line. The heavy stonework of the viaduct shows some of the most dramatic battle damage left in Berlin today.
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This building on Am Kupfergraben is part of the Humboldt University and has some of the most dramatic battle damage to be seen in the city today. Shell strikes of various calibres can be seen around the lower windows, indicating where the defence was concentrated.
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Soviet troops advancing along Dominicusstraße towards the Rathaus Schöneberg, 27th April 1945 and the same scenes today.
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Battle scarred buildings on the Humboldt University campus off Friedrichstraße. This area would have been the scene of heavy fighting during the German breakout attempt on 1st/2nd May 1945.
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A battle damaged former brewery on Landsberger Allee.
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Marshall Zhukov and staff in the courtyard of Wehrmacht HQ, Bendler Straße after the German surrender. Thanks to Adam Surrey for the blend photo.
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The Karstadt department store on Hermannplatz was blown up by the SS Nordland on April 25th 1945. The reason for its destruction is unclear, but I subscribe to the theory that it was to deny the Soviets a high vantage point. Only a small part of the original building remains.
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A rather sad new research project for 2023. I have acquired all the documents of a Volkssturm man killed at his own home by enemy action in Friedenau on 27/4/1945. I know where he is buried but need to find his unit history and how he met his end.
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Dramatic battle damage on the Leibnizstraße S-Bahn bridge in Charlottenburg. Much more on that on my FB page.
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Brandwachenstände, one man bunker still in place in a factory courtyard on Urbanstraße. These were used by Luftschutz personnel to shelter in if they were caught in the open during an air raid. Many thanks to
@kriegsspuren
for showing me this fascinating relic of WW2.
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It was in the former Wehrmacht pioneer school on Zwieseler Straße in Karlshorst, on 8th May 1945 that the German surrender was signed by Chief of command of the Wehrmacht, Wilhelm Keitel, in the presence of Marshal Zhukov and representatives of the Western Allies.
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A Soviet mortar team at Bülowstraße U Bahn station around April 29th 1945, and the same place today. The station still has many scars of combat to be seen.
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A striking WW1 Zeppelin crew memorial in the Friedhof Lillenthalstraße, Kreuzberg. It reads ‘Den Deutsche Luftschiffers 1914-1918’.
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A still taken from Soviet newsreel footage shows troops running up the stairs of the Rathaus Schöneberg while the commentary proclaims “Reichstaga !”
The comparison photo shows that the Rathaus has not changed at all inside. Even the clock is in the same place.
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Some original signage in the Mutter und Kinder Luftschutz bunker under Dresdener Straße in Kreuzberg. The Berliner Unterwelten have recently opened the bunker for tours. We took one today and I highly recommend it.
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Echoes from the past. An abandoned death strip obstacle lies in front of a battle scarred, semi derelict former homeless shelter at Gesundbrunnen.
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Not Berlin related but an interesting flohmarkt find. A tough looking customer. Written on the back in pencil is “Marched for 50km, then fought with bandits. Just returned. Now for some schnapps. My knees are sore. Your pappa”
Early to mid war Ostfront ? Opinions welcome.
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Type M-500 Hochbunker on Friedrich-Karl Straße, Tempelhof. Built in 1943, the 500 designation refers to the amount of people it could accommodate. I was lucky enough to get a rare peek inside. It is a listed monument and is one of five such bunkers left in Berlin.
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Keep your eyes on the ground and you might see one of these. This is the air vent cover from a WW2 air raid shelter and they are still fairly common. Mannesmann is the manufacturer and Luftschutz means Air Raid Protection. This one is on Wiener Straße. History in plain sight.
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Another successful walking tour on Saturday. We were blessed with the warmest day of the year so far. This time we focused on the Allied bombing campaign, the Flak defences and the Soviet assault in the North of the city. Look out for the next one and message if interested.
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Ghosts of the past. Recruits pose outside the swimming pool of the SS Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler barracks in Lichterfelde. 1942 and today.
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Mystery WW2 concrete remains in the Tiergarten. At first I thought it must be remains of the Zoo L Tower but the construction is different. Notice the shrapnel damage, bitumen covering and lack of rebar. It’s more reminiscent of an Atlantic Wall bunker. Location in comments.
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Thanks to everyone who came on our second walking tour yesterday. It was a lot of fun and I hope also informative. We explored the story of Horst Wessel, then followed the progress of the Red Army through Prenzlauer Berg to the centre of Berlin. Keep a lookout for the next one.
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The Eldorado at Motzstraße 15 was a famous nightclub during the Weimar Republic and frequented by the likes of Anita Berber and Christopher Isherwood. In 1932 the local police chief ordered the closure of all “homosexual dance pleasures” and in 1933 it became an SA Headquarters.
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WW2 era murals in the air raid shelters below Tempelhof airport and the fire damaged ceiling in a closed off section of the main hall, caused during the Soviet assault on the airport.
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A dramatic photo, taken around 26th April 1945, showing a civilian taking cover from shelling behind an anti tank barrier across the Southern end of Potsdamer Brücke and the same view today. The corner building survived and has now an extra floor added.
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The Hochbunker Heckeshorn is a stones throw from the Wannsee conference house. It dates from 1940 and was part of the Reich Air Defence School. It was used as a command centre for air defence of greater Berlin and as an air raid shelter for prominent Nazis living in the area.
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Hot off the presses. Soviet troops pose proudly with what appears to be a captured German 20mm anti aircraft gun on Mehringdamm, May 1945 and half an hour ago.
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Erich Marx, a medic in Volkssturm Battalion 3/427 was killed, aged 44, at this house at Odenwaldstraße 23, Friedenau, on 27/4/45. He lived next door. The Soviet 9th Mechanised Corps were in the area at the time. He is buried just a few hundred meters from where he lived and died.
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South of Berlin is the town of Halbe, where the German 9th Army plus many thousands of fleeing refugees were surrounded by the Soviet forces in April 1945 and practically annihilated. The forests are filled with trenches and shell holes, and equipment still litters the ground.
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Soviet troops at the junction of Monbijoustraße and Oranienburger Straße. May 1945 and November 2021. Blend photo courtesy of Adam Surrey.
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Dramatic evidence of combat in the Friedhof Jerusalem I on Mehringdamm. The Friedhof was in the direct line of the Soviet advance towards the heavily defended Landwehrkanal and the German defenders would have been raked with fire from the Southern end of the cemetery.
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Tomorrow I leave on a motorcycle tour of France and Belgium so there won’t be any Berlin posts till the end of August but I may post any battle damage of interest that I come across on my travels. On my return I’ll be in contact with those who messaged me about the walking tour.
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To follow up on the July 8th post on the damage to the Zoo Bahnhof S Bahn bridge, here is a photo from 1947 showing the same three shrapnel or shell holes that are pictured in the post. This is pure coincidence. Many thanks to Pete Garnham for pointing this out.
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Wartime damage to the S Bahn bridge at Zoo Bahnhof has recently been highlighted and measured for reasons unknown. Theories from posters on my FB page suggest a survey to ascertain if rust is enlarging the holes over time. This sounds plausible.
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The Friedhof on Liesenstraße, just a stones throw from the Humboldthain flakturm shows many scars from the fierce combat in the area during the last days of World War 2.
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Sunday 15th is our second walking tour. Those who expressed an interest have already been contacted and know the time and location to meet. If anyone going requires any more information, please send a message. At the minute the weather forecast looks good, but dress accordingly.
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Some images of the Palace de Justice, Rouen, from our recent trip. Badly damaged during Allied bombing in the run up to D-Day, this is worse than any damage I’ve seen in Berlin.
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The AEG Werke adjacent to the Humboldthain Flakturm was the scene of intense combat from 26th to 30th April 1945 between elements of the the 9th Fallschirmjäger Division and the Soviet 52nd Guards Rifle Division. The evidence is still there to be seen all over this huge complex.
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On 3rd Feb 1945 the US 8th Airforce launched a huge daylight raid on Berlin. 1500 bombers and 1000 escort fighters attacked the railway network in the West of the city, causing huge damage and fires that lasted 4 days. Photo taken on Askanischer Platz, and the same view today.
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Nazi symbolism hiding in plain sight. Hitler Youth and BDM girl figures still adorn the 1930’s housing development on Grazer Damm, Schöneberg.
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We had a brilliant tour group on Saturday, following the progress of the Red Army through Schöneberg and into Mitte. Many thanks to all that attended. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Keep a lookout for details of the next tour, which will probably be in August.
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My local S-Bahn station on Feuerbachstraße in Steglitz. 1945 and today.
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On 26th April 45, Soviet forces came up against the S-Bahn ring defence line at Neukölln manned by SS Nordland and Charlemagne divisions. Reminders of this combat can be seen on Saalestraße. Some serious firepower was unleashed on this building backing directly onto the S-Bahn.
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We are planning on running the first walking tour of 2024 on Saturday 30th March. To improve the experience for everyone, places are limited to 12, so if you’re interested, send me a message as soon as possible. As before, the tour will be free of charge and in English. Thanks.
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The Rathaus Schöneberg, where John F Kennedy gave his famous “Ich bin ein Berliner” speech on June 26th 1963 still shows the scars of Allied bombing and the battle of Berlin. Shrapnel can be seen still embedded in one wall.
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For Holocaust Memorial Day.
A few years ago I was stopped in my track by this memorial, made all the more poignant by the sheer banality of the location, beside a Lidl on an industrial estate in Moabit. It’s impossible to imagine the horrors witnessed here.
Never forget.
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A charming settlement of alpine housing on the shores of Krumme Lanke, but they have a dark history. Built in the 30s on the orders of Heinrich Himmler to house SS officers and their families in a suitably Germanic setting in opposition to the modernist movement the Nazis hated.
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We are running another walking tour in English on Saturday June 1st. Places are very limited. Message if interested. Thanks.
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At Bogensee, 9 miles North of Berlin lies the crumbling villa of propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels. Completed in 1939, the villa was used to entertain his many mistresses until Allied bombing forced him to move his family in from 1943. Full article coming soon on the FB page.
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Layers of history. Looking from the grounds of the former Gestapo headquarters through a hole in the Berlin Wall onto what was the Aviation Ministry of Hermann Göring.
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Schulenbergring 2, Tempelhof was Soviet General Chuikov’s HQ and the site of the signing of surrender of the German forces in Berlin. Here General Hans Krebs arrives on May 1st to begin negotiations which initially failed. He was later to commit suicide in the Führerbunker.
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A few more photos from our recent first walking tour in which we followed the progress of the Red Army through Schöneberg, across the Landwehrkanal and to the edge of the Tiergarten. I think everyone enjoyed it. Thanks to Adam Berry for the photos. More tours to follow.
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There are not many memorials to WW2 German military units in Berlin, but in the Friedhof Columbiadamm several can be found placed discreetly on the back of WW1 memorials.
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Dramatic evidence of a large calibre artillery or aerial bomb explosion on a bridge support on Yorckstraße. Notice also that the supports were painted white to be visible during blackout.
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A merry Christmas and a peaceful new year to all. Thanks for all your support and comments in 2023 and a big shout out to those who attended the walking tours. I hope you enjoyed them as much as I did. Keep a look out for more in 2024. I’ll post details at a later date. Prost !
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This battle damage on Große Hamburger Strasse looks like it might have happened yesterday.
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On May 19th 1944 the B-17G ‘Miss Donna Mae II of the US 94th Bomb Group was struck by a bomb from an aircraft above and crashed in front of the fire station on Oderberger Straße. All eleven crew on board perished. One body was not recovered until May 31st.
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The aftermath of a US daylight raid on February 3rd 1945, Askanischer Platz, and the same scene today.
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Small-arms damage to Golgathakirche on Borsigstraße.
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Rathaus Schöneberg S-Bahn station in 1946 and the same view today. The wall and the statue in the background provide the link to history.
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This bullet damaged house on Sigismundstraße would have been a strongpoint on the inner defence line just North of the Landwehrkanal and just a few hundred metres from where the Soviets crossed the Potsdam bridge on 30th April 1945.
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The B&W photo is captioned as “Police troops mopping up after food shortage riots”. I was skeptical about these riots ever happening, given the strictness of the Nazi regime until I was sent the clipping. The last photo shows the location today on Hohenfriedberg Str, Schöneberg.
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A unique example of battle damage being purposely preserved at Oderberger Straße 42. Presumably the building would have sustained damage all over but a conscious effort has been made to leave several areas unrepaired and unpainted. I’d love to know the motivation behind this.
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I picked these up locally a few weeks ago. Very nice, but what have they got to do with Berlin battle damage, I hear you ask. Expand the photo of the back and read the story. Very poignant and sad. I believe these were made to sell to Allied troops as a souvenir of Berlin.
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Rosa Luxemburg with Kostja Zetkin on the balcony of her apartment at Cranachstraße 58. The balcony above the book in the photo. Luxemburg played a key role in the struggle against the proto Nazi right wing Freikorps until they murdered her along with Karl Liebknecht on 15/01/1919
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I’ve just had an article published in conjunction with Exberliner magazine. It will also be translated into German for their sister publication Tip-Berlin.
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SS Panzer Grenadier Paul Pellens was 17 years old when he fell during the Soviet assault on the Olympic Stadium. His blood stained Soldbuch was recovered from his body and he was buried just a stones throw from where he died.
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@WhitlamsBerlin
They are to protect the walls from the wheel hubs of wagons, which sit out further than the wheel rim itself. Most old buildings with a Hof have them in various designs.
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@archer_rs
This is hugely entertaining, although maybe not for you. As a metal detectorist myself, I have a fair idea that they haven’t a legal leg to stand on.
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@James1940
@WeHaveWaysPod
@almurray
I look forward to hearing it. Tomorrow I travel to Berlin to research a Volkssturm member who was killed outside his own house during the battle of Berlin. I have all his documents. Hopefully I can find out how he died.
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@kriegsspuren
It should be preserved and turned into something positive, like an arts centre. The more reminders of evil that are removed, the closer we are to forgetting and repeating it.
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Next Thursday I return to Berlin and if the weather is cooperative I hope to travel outside the city to the forests of Brandenburg in search of evidence of the days of April 1945. If not, battle damage will be examined from inside a historic Berlin bar.
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@Chrisjw00
This is probably the one you’re thinking of, on Leibnizstraße. The hole was made by a Soviet 85mm armour piercing shell.
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For our German followers, here’s the recent article translated into German for Tip-Berlin magazine.
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Civilians constructing a ‘Panzersperre’ anti tank barrier outside the Bötzow brewery on Prenzlauer Allee and the same view today.
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Off on the bike to Berlin via Caen then Liége and into Germany via the Hürtgenwald, crossing the Rhine at Remagen. Stop at Göttingen and arrive in Berlin on Monday. The closer we get to Berlin the hotter it gets. I would imagine that the US Army said something similar in 1945.
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@Tunisia_1943
If you fancy a tour of the WW2 sites of Berlin, including lots of hidden gems, send me a message and we can arrange it. There may also be beer involved.
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Ciarán was one of the first people I met in Berlin and was a big inspiration for me to do this page. Now he’s getting the exposure he deserves.
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Last week I was guest on a podcast chatting about all things WW2 Berlin. If you’re minded you can watch it here.
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