Elections in East and West Berlin

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The early parliamentary elections held in West Berlin on 10 May 1981 herald a major turning point in the city’s post-war history. The SPD are forced out of government for the first time, Richard von Weizsäcker of the centre-right CDU becomes Mayor of West Berlin and appoints Heinrich Lummer (CDU) as Senator of the Interior, and the Greens win seats for the first time ever.

The GDR is also going to the polls in a general election. Unsurprisingly, the SED led by General Secretary Honecker wins 99.86 percent of the vote.

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Abgeordnetenhaus von Berlin, damals im Rathaus Schöneberg

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5

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52.484388

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13.343286
Palast der Republik (Schlossplatz), 10178 Berlin

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55

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52.5175

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13.402222

date

March 20, 1981
SEZ complex opens in East Berlin

The SEZ sports and leisure complex opens in Friedrichshain, East Berlin. It attracts 16 million visitors in the first five years alone. The complex, which had swimming pools, sports halls, an ice rink and several restaurants, was designed to welcome up to 22,000 visitors a day. Heide-Maria Heyde used to work there and recalls the long queues that were a daily sight outside the complex.

Contemporary Witnesses, Everyday Life, East

01:56
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1981
Squatting in Kreuzberg

Housing in West Berlin is scarce, but whole streets in Kreuzberg and Schöneberg are being cleared of tenants. Once empty, the old buildings are to be torn down and new ones put up in their place. This destructive approach to urban development makes sense because the projects qualify for government subsidies. Young families, unemployed people, non-conformists and students are hit especially hard by the lack of housing. Some decide to fight back by occupying empty buildings. Anette Schill was one of them. In 1981 she and some friends occupy an old chemicals factory in Kreuzberg. She tells us about the early days of what would become known as the Rainbow Factory.

Contemporary Witnesses, Everyday Life, Politics, West

02:16
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1981
Daily life in the divided city

The Wall has been part of Berlin life for 20 years now. People on both sides have done their best to get used to it, and the death strip and hostile barriers on either side have become almost normal. In fact, a lot of people in the West no longer find the Wall much of a threat.

Border, Everyday Life, West, East

00:53
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1981
Christiane F.

The film Christiane F. – Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo tells the story of Christiane Felscherinow from Gropiusstadt in Berlin. Christiane became addicted to heroin after coming into contact with drugs for the first time through friends in 1974. The film is based on the book Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo, and features harrowing scenes of life as a young drug addict in West Berlin.

Culture, West

00:54
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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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September 22, 1981
Man dies during protests

Heinrich Lummer (CDU), West Berlin’s senator of the interior, arranges for eight squats to be cleared at the same time. He later gives a press conference in one of the buildings. As Lummer speaks to reporters inside, protestors gather outside on the street. Police clash with the squatters, and the situation leads to 18-year-old Klaus-Jürgen Rattay being knocked down and killed by a bus.

Politics, West

02:10
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1982
Smog alert in West Berlin

West Berlin issues several smog alerts in 1982. Citizens are told that, due to high levels of carbon and sulphur dioxide, they should leave their cars at home, keep windows closed and avoid exercising outside. Smog hits Berlin whenever the wind blows from the southeast and brings pollution over from Czechoslovakia and the GDR’s chemical plants located just outside the city. East Berlin, however, acts as if nothing is wrong. As far as the official line is concerned, there is no smog.

Everyday Life, West, East

00:31
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1982
Blues Masses in East Berlin

A church in East Berlin starts holding what will become known as Blues Masses. The events attract those who are unhappy with the regime. Dirk Moldt, an 18-year-old watchmaker’s apprentice, is among them. The young people who gather here feel protected by the church and safe from the repression of the state. Father Rainer Eppelmann and Robert Havemann, a staunch critic of the government, publish their "Berlin Appeal", in which they call for disarmament and freedom of speech.

Contemporary Witnesses, Opposition, East

01:37
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June 11, 1982
Reagan visits West Berlin

When President Ronald Reagan visits West Berlin in 1982, protestors take to the street to demonstrate for disarmament and peace. But rather than focus on phasing out weapons and bringing East and West closer together, Reagan uses his speech to call for a build-up of military power. Hand-picked Berliners welcome Reagan as he arrives at Tempelhof airport. Another carefully selected crowd wait to greet him at Charlottenburg Palace, where he delivers his now-famous words: “Berlin bleibt doch Berlin. Berlin is still Berlin.” That evening, demonstrations against America’s arms policy tip over into rioting on the streets of West Berlin.

Politics, West

01:58
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August 1982
AEG goes bankrupt

For many years, subsidies have made the living in West Berlin easy. But now cuts are on the horizon, and in August 1982 electronics giant AEG-Telefunken files for bankruptcy. Some 11,000 jobs hang in the balance. Erhard Bartels was among the AEG employees fearing for their livelihoods. Karl Carstens, then president of West Germany, visits West Berlin as part of a nationwide tour. He comes face-to-face with the AEG employees’ predicament and promises to bring the issue up with the government on his return to Bonn.

Contemporary Witnesses, Everyday Life, Politics, West

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June 26, 1963
Kennedy and Khrushchev in Berlin

The Cold War is raging. US President John F. Kennedy arrives in West Berlin in the morning of 26 June 1963. As he drives through the walled-in city, excited Berliners line the streets and give him a rapturous welcome. Children are given the day off school and businesses are closed. A reported 1.5 million people have come out to get a glimpse of Kennedy. His visit culminates with a speech in front of Schöneberg Town Hall, at that time the official seat of Berlin's mayor Willy Brandt and his successors. It is here that the young president and bearer of hope for West Berliners utters the legendary words "ich bin ein Berliner" to huge applause and cheers from the crowd. Just two days after Kennedy, the GDR authorities retaliate by inviting Kremlin leader Nikita Khrushchev on a state visit to East Berlin. But the East Berliners' enthusiasm for Khrushchev is muted in comparison...

Contemporary Witnesses, Politics, West, East

03:59
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November 10, 1989
Willy Brandt at Schöneberg town hall

On 10 November 1989, the day after the border opens, Willy Brandt is in West Berlin. The former chancellor served as Mayor of Berlin between 1957 and 1966, which means he was in power during the early years of the Wall. Brandt joins Chancellor Kohl in speaking at a rally outside Schöneberg town hall, where a crowd of Berliners have gathered. In his speech, he says: “From the war, and from the discord between the allied powers, grew the line that eventually divided Europe and Germany. Berlin reproduced this line in numerous ways. But now here we are, and I thank God that it has happened in my lifetime, watching as the two halves of Europe begin finding their way back to each other.” His famous words, “What belongs together can now grow together”, were not actually part of this speech. Also present at Schöneberg town hall are Walter Momper (Mayor of Berlin) and Hans-Dietrich Genscher (West Germany’s foreign minister).

Politics, West, East

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November 10, 1989
Helmut Kohl at Schöneberg town hall

On 10 November 1989, the day after the border opens, Chancellor Kohl gives a speech at a rally in West Berlin in front of Schöneberg town hall. The building was the seat of the Mayor of Berlin from 1949 to 1991. Also present at Schöneberg town hall are Walter Momper (Mayor of Berlin), Hans-Dietrich Genscher (West Germany’s foreign minister) and Willy Brandt (former chancellor). Chancellor Kohl has to try and make himself heard above the noise of the crowd. In his speech, he underlines the importance of German unity, talks about a united Germany in Europe and takes time to remember all those who lost their lives at the Wall. He calls for the country to reject radical ideas and voices, and to remain calm and act wisely in the days and weeks to come.

Politics, West, East

04:38
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August 16, 1961
Brandt and Adenauer's reaction to the Wall

West Berlin's mayor Willy Brandt gives a speech at a protest rally at Schöneberg Town Hall. Federal Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, however, does not arrive in Berlin until days later.

Border, Politics, West

00:54
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October 26, 1968
Olympic gold medallist Manfred Wolke

East and West German athletes are competing in different teams at the Olympic Games for the first time – with different anthems, but still with the same flag. Boxer Manfred Wolke wins a gold medal for the GDR.

Contemporary Witnesses, Culture, East

00:46
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November 03, 1971
Four Power Agreement

Twenty-five years after the end of the war, talks are launched in an attempt to finally clarify the status of Berlin. After lengthy negotiations, the US, the UK, France and the Soviet Union sign the Four Power Agreement on 3 September 1971. It confirms that Berlin (West) is not a part of the Federal Republic of Germany, but acknowledges the special ties between Berlin (West) and West Germany. It also lays down provisions concerning transit traffic between the FRG and Berlin (West), the rights of West Berlin residents to visit the Eastern part of the city and the GDR and the extent of West German presence in Berlin (West). The agreement brings about noticeable improvements to the lives of Berliners – tensions between East and West are gradually easing.

Politics, West, East

01:20
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April 05, 1986
Attack on La Belle nightclub

A bomb attack on the American nightclub La Belle in West Berlin leaves three people dead and over 200 injured. It is the worst attack Berlin has suffered in recent years. The US believe Libyan leader, Colonel Gaddafi, is behind the bombing, so on 15 April it retaliates with airstrikes on the capital, Tripoli. Katja Bahadori is in the nightclub when the bomb goes off. She is taken to hospital with serious injuries.

Contemporary Witnesses, Politics, West

02:31
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October 02, 1990
Allied control ends

Allied control in Berlin has been governing relations between the occupying powers and West Germany since 1949. This control, along with Berlin’s special status, comes to an end in early October 1990, when the GDR becomes part of the Federal Republic of Germany. The Two plus Four treaty is signed on 12 September 1990. It returns full sovereignty to Germany, giving the country sole control over its domestic and foreign affairs.

Politics, West

00:56
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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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1975
Schöneberg's last cowshed

The last courtyard cowshed in Schöneberg, West Berlin, has to close. Berliners must say goodbye to the days when they could get farm-fresh milk just by walking down the street.

Everyday Life, West

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