The oil crisis hits Berlin

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The oil embargo of 1973 was a politically motivated crisis. OPEC decided to cut oil production by approximately five percent. The aim was to put pressure on Western nations who were supporting Israel in the Yom Kippur War in October 1973.

On 17 October 1973 the price of oil rose from around three US dollars per barrel (159 litres) to over five dollars, equivalent to an increase of approximately 70 percent. The oil crisis also had an impact on West Berlin, causing petrol shortages and rationing. The Federal Government even introduced car-free Sundays.

locations

Berlin-West, Kurfürstendamm

showtime
5

latitude
52.504049

longitude
13.33239

date

July 29, 1973
World Festival of Youth

For the second time since 1951 East Berlin is organising the World Festival of Youth and Students. Eight million people descend on the city, transforming Alexanderplatz into a huge festival arena. The GDR, with its new head of state and Party leader Erich Honecker, wants to present a cosmopolitan image. Free love, long hair: a colourful chaos. Suddenly almost anything seems to go in the GDR capital, turned upside down for nine days. West Berlin sports teacher Gunnar Rohn talks about his experiences at the festival. A different kind of provocation is coming from East Berlin's cinemas: the film The Legend of Paul and Paula escapes a ban by the skin of its teeth. It is to become one of the most successful DEFA films of all time.

Contemporary Witnesses, Culture, East

03:24
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1973
A car made in West Berlin

A new car is being built in West Berlin: "the shopper". It is the curious product of lavish state subsidies allocated to the walled-in city to attract industry. But the new vehicle is too small, too impractical and too expensive. After just one year, the manufacturer declares itself bankrupt. Fewer than 2,000 “shoppers” have rolled off the production line.

Everyday Life, West

00:59
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1973
Double-decker buses

Berlin Transport Authority's (BVG) double-decker buses wind through the city's streets decked out in bright and cheerful adverts in an attempt to generate funds for its cash-strapped coffers. This is not the only innovation on the bus lines: for the first time since the war, women are also allowed behind the wheels of double-deckers. Up until 1971 this was prohibited by law.

Everyday Life, West

00:51
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1973
Rubbish from the West in the GDR

West Berlin is drowning in rubbish. In 1973 it produces three million cubic metres of household rubbish – enough to fill the Olympic Stadium four times over. West Berlin's rubbish dumps are full and there is no space for new ones. Where can all this rubbish go? The easing of tensions may enable West Berlin to “export” its rubbish to the East... Michael Ferber, former technical director of West Berlin's Sanitation Department, recalls the negotiations with the GDR.

Border, Contemporary Witnesses, Everyday Life, Politics, West, East

01:24
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1973
Escaping via transit routes

As a result of the 1971 Basic Treaty between the Federal Republic and the GDR, thorough vehicle checks on transit routes are few and far between. This turns the transit motorway into a loophole for would-be escapees. Anyone slipping into a car boot or a truck trailer has a good chance of getting to West Berlin unnoticed.

Border, Escaping, West, East

00:35
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November 02, 1973
Laying the foundation stone of the Palace of the Republic

A new palace is emerging in East Berlin: the Palace of the Republic. Berlin Palace once stood on this spot. The GDR authorities had the grand Prussian building blown up in 1950. A “palace for the people” will now take its place. It will also be home to the GDR's People's Parliament. The modern building's doors will open 32 months later in 1976.

Everyday Life, East

00:49
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1974
Intershops open

In 1974 GDR citizens are allowed to purchase Western goods in foreign-currency shops - known as Intershops - for the first time. The product lines in these stores featured a small selection of high-quality GDR merchandise and a large range of goods produced in the FRG or other countries in the non-Socialist economic area. Shoppers could pay in Deutsche marks (Western marks) or in other currencies, such as the US dollar or the Austrian shilling. Prices were marked in Deutsche marks and set by the GDR authorities. Special conversion tables were provided to convert West German marks into other currencies, but they had little relation to the actual rates. The Intershops, a source of tax-free goods, were very popular among West Berliners. Smuggling goods for personal use virtually became a national sport.

Everyday Life, West, East

01:53
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1974
Everyday life for the allies

The families of the allied forces spend their day-to-day lives in their own residential areas in West Berlin, complete with schools and shops. The British even have their own train, which travels from Berlin to Hanover once a week.

Everyday Life, West

00:32
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1974
A tank runs amok

In March 1974 a US soldier runs amok in his tank and almost sparks a global conflict. The soldier breaks through the border crossing at Checkpoint Charlie, drives to the Dreilinden Checkpoint and continues on into the GDR. His motive remains unknown.

Border, Escaping, West, East

00:27
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1974
West Germany's Permanent Mission in East Berlin

The two German states establish official relations. Although the governments of the Federal Republic of Germany and the GDR did not open embassies in Bonn/East Berlin – the Federal Republic did not recognise the GDR as a foreign country under international law – they did establish Permanent Missions on 2 May 1974. The Basic Treaty signed in 1972 paved the way for this step. The staff of West Germany's Permanent Mission lived and worked in East Berlin. However, their children went to school in West Berlin. A life divided between two very different worlds. Ministry official Hans-Otto Bräutigam vividly recalls this time.

Contemporary Witnesses, Politics, West, East

02:37
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location

August 13, 1962
First anniversary of the Wall

In the year since the Wall went up, 20 people have died trying to escape to the West. West Berliners fall silent for three minutes at midday on 13 August 1962 to commemorate the Wall’s victims. Afterwards they protest by honking their horns. Horst Materna describes how many Berliners had accepted the Wall and already saw it as a part of everyday life.

Border, Contemporary Witnesses, Politics, West

00:55
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1977
The German Autumn

In 1977, during what became known as the German Autumn, the RAF terrorist group plunges West Germany into turmoil. The West Berlin police get involved in helping to hunt down the people who kidnapped Hanns Martin Schleyer, president of an employers’ association. Andreas Baader and Gudrun Ensslin, two RAF terrorists being held in custody, commit suicide when they hear that the hostages on a hijacked Lufthansa plane have been freed in Mogadishu, Somalia. Birgit Roehl from West Berlin was one of the 86 hostages freed that day. On 19 October, the body of Hanns Martin Schleyer is found. He was murdered by the RAF.

Contemporary Witnesses, Politics, West

01:11
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May 1974
Willy Brandt steps down

Günter Guillaume, a close aide of Willy Brandt, is exposed as a Stasi agent, prompting Brandt to step down as Federal Chancellor on 6 May 1974. Berliners are dismayed: Brandt symbolises the policy of easing tensions which has led to significant improvements to everyday life in the divided city. The day of his resignation, they come out onto the streets to demonstrate their support.

Politics, West

00:39
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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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November 1989
East Germans go West

In November 1989, East Berliners pour over the border in their Trabants, or Trabis as they are affectionately known. West Berlin has never seen anything like it. Every GDR citizen gets 100 Deutsche marks as a welcome gift. After queuing up at the bank, the new arrivals take their money and crowd into shopping centres around West Berlin. Some West Berliners are quick to complain about the shops being so full, but most people are very understanding.

Everyday Life, West, East

00:57
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February 1980
Solo Sunny

East and West both participate in the Berlin International Film Festival. The GDR has entered the DEFA film Solo Sunny in the competition section. East Berlin actress Renate Krössner surprises everyone by winning the Silver Bear for her performance in the title role. Renate has director Konrad Wolff to thank for being able to collect her award in person. She talks about the trip and how she never expected to be able to travel to West Berlin.

Contemporary Witnesses, Culture, West, East

02:06
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1975
Jacob the Liar competes at the Berlinale

This is the first year that filmmakers from East Berlin have participated in the Berlinale, West Berlin’s international film festival. Director Frank Beyer and writer Jurek Becker enter their film, Jacob the Liar, in the competition section.

Culture, West, East

00:44
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1969
Migrant workers in West Berlin

Due to the shortage of skilled labour in West Berlin, workers are recruited from other countries in the 1960s. Many of Berlin's new residents come from Turkey. Hairdresser Suleyman Ilkan works in a salon at Zoo Station and learns German on the job, allowing him to act as an interpreter for his fellow countrymen when they arrive at Zoo Station.

Contemporary Witnesses, Everyday Life, West

02:18
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April 02, 1965
The Europa-Center opens

The grand opening of the Europa-Center on Breitscheidplatz. A new landmark for West Berlin, located next to the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. Towering 86 metres, the "showcase of the golden West" was the tallest building in the city back then. Today it is a listed building. Karl Heinz Pepper oversaw construction of the complex. Before the Second World War, the site was home to the Romanische Café, a legendary meeting place for writers, painters and theatre actors.

Everyday Life, West

00:25
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November 1980
New pandas for the zoo

The Chinese government gives the West German Chancellor, Helmut Schmidt, two pandas. Bao-Bao and Tien-Tien take up residence in the zoo in West Berlin, and soon win hearts throughout the city.

Everyday Life, West

00:28
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