Combined tour of »Karl-Marx-Allee«: From prefabricated buildings to workers' palaces
Introduction at the DDR Museum: Everyday life in the GDR
The tour begins with a one-hour walk through the permanent exhibition at the DDR Museum. Here, a guide uses original exhibits and interactive installations to teach the group the basics of understanding GDR history. The focus is on East Berlin as the representative capital of the GDR and on the topics of housing and life in the self-proclaimed workers' and farmers' state.
The replica WBS 70 - tower block flat is particularly popular. Five rooms, furnished true to the original, give visitors an insight into the life of a family of four. The exhibition illustrates everyday life in the new housing estates that sprang up on the outskirts of cities in the 1970s and 1980s as part of the government's housing programme. These simple, functional buildings formed a stark contrast to the urban planning of the 1950s, as can be seen, for example, around the Frankfurter Tor. Changes in architectural style, influenced by scarce resources and changing aesthetic preferences, are clearly illustrated.
Centre of Socialist Modernism
The museum visit is followed by a one-hour city tour. Alexanderplatz is just a short walk from the DDR Museum. Here, urban structures clearly illustrate the transformation of East Berlin in the 1960s and 1970s. The tour starts at the TV Tower, whose completion in 1969 marked a turning point in the city's redevelopment. It stands for socialist modernism and the GDR's endeavour to create a symbol of progress that was visible from afar, measuring itself against international standards.
Opposite the Red Town Hall, you can also see early prefabricated buildings that were constructed in the 1960s. Incidentally, this type of building was not exclusive to the GDR – similar buildings were also constructed in West Germany, London and Paris, often as social housing. In the GDR, on the other hand, social mixing was much greater. Newly built flats were highly sought-after living space, especially in comparison to the unrenovated old buildings in Prenzlauer Berg, for example, which had suffered severe war damage.
Monumental architecture and workers' uprising
The tour continues along Karl-Marx-Allee, taking us back to the early years of the GDR. The street, a central traffic artery in Berlin, stretches across the districts of Mitte and Friedrichshain. While the section in Mitte is mainly characterised by prefabricated buildings from the 1960s, Friedrichshain is dominated by monumental apartment blocks and towers in the »Zuckerbäckerstil« (confectioner's style) of the early 1950s. The street, initially known as Stalinallee after 1949, was built in close accordance with Soviet models.
As a boulevard, it was a central stage for socialist self-expression. The big parades on 1 May and the Republic's birthday took place here. At the same time, political changes are particularly evident here: the renaming of the street to Karl-Marx-Allee in 1961, which was accompanied by the removal of the Stalin statue near Strausberger Platz during the night, speaks volumes.
Around Weberwiese in particular, there is an impressive view of buildings in the style of Socialist Classicism. The spacious apartments were allocated by the GDR leadership to deserving members of the working class, but also to officials. This was intended to underline the ideological claim. Instead of living in dark tenements, workers were to live in »workers« palaces’. At Weberwiese, however, it becomes clear that this image was fractured from the outset. The representative buildings were not only the scene of state propaganda, but also witnesses to protest and social tension.
This construction site was the starting point of the popular uprising on 17 June 1953. The workers' revolt began in East Berlin with strikes by construction workers on Stalinallee, who were protesting against increased quotas and the resulting wage cuts. Within a very short time, the protest spread to numerous businesses in East Berlin and throughout the GDR. While the people demanded political reforms, free elections and an end to SED rule, the GDR leadership responded by imposing a state of emergency. Soviet tanks and units of the Barracks People's Police violently crushed the uprising.
Experience architectural history in the urban space
Karl-Marx-Allee impressively illustrates the development of urban planning in the GDR – from the boulevard of the early 1950s to the pragmatic new buildings of the late GDR. The combination of a museum visit and a city tour allows school classes in particular to experience GDR history directly in the original urban space.
If you are interested and would like a consultation, please feel free to contact visitor services by telephone on 030-847 123 73 – 32 or by email at besucherbetreuung@ddr-museum.de! You can also make a booking enquiry directly using the booking form on our website.
