Berlin Hohenschönhausen Memorial

Numerous GDR opposition activists, escape helpers and those wishing to leave the country – as political prisoners, many are familiar with the former central remand prison of the Ministry for State Security. Today, the Berlin-Hohenschönhausen Memorial commemorates the history of political repression. Contemporary witnesses and historians guide you through the grounds, which were a place of political persecution for 44 years. Large parts of the buildings have been preserved and give you an authentic impression of the conditions of detention between 1946 and 1990. No wonder the memorial attracts more than 400,000 visitors every year.

Imprisoned in Hohenschönhausen

The permanent exhibition Imprisoned in Hohenschönhausen – Evidence of Political Persecution 1945-1989 presents rare objects and numerous historical documents and photographs relating to the Hohenschönhausen prison, including clothing and prisoners' letters, in a 700 m² space. It traces the everyday life of the prisoners as well as the history of the former Stasi prison. For the first time, a separate section of the exhibition also sheds light on the world of the perpetrators.

In forced community

The exhibition In Forced Community: The Prisoners' Work Commands in Hohenschönhausen opens up the previously inaccessible kitchen wing of the prison. The exhibition focuses on the living and working conditions of the female prisoners who worked here. Visitors can explore it independently with the help of tablets. Women were employed in the prison kitchen, as cleaners, and for sewing, washing and ironing. Volumetric 3D images of those affected also enable a virtual encounter with former prisoners.

History: From commercial kitchen to Stasi prison

After the end of the Second World War, a Soviet special camp was set up on the site of a former commercial kitchen in north-east Berlin. After the camp was closed in October 1946, the central Soviet remand prison for East Germany was established in the basement of the building. In 1951, the Ministry for State Security took over the building, expanded it in 1961 with a new extension and used it as a central remand prison until 1989. Thousands of politically persecuted people were imprisoned here, including almost all known GDR opposition figures.
The remand prison was located in a restricted military zone that was hermetically sealed off from the outside world. From the 1970s onwards, the area was not marked on any East Berlin city map. Today, the site of the former Ministry for State Security remand centre in Berlin-Hohenschönhausen stands, like few other places in Germany, for the history of political persecution in the Soviet occupation zone and the GDR.

Contemporary witnesses tell their stories

A tour with one of the forty former prisoners, who now work as guides and tell you about their personal experiences, is particularly moving. It is precisely these authentic eyewitness accounts that attract so many visitors to Hohenschönhausen.

Your visit

We recommend booking tickets online for all public tours. The exhibitions can also be visited free of charge without a guided tour.
Further information on tours and guided tours can be found on the website, as well as on the digital educational offerings of the Hohenschönhausen Memorial.
 

Information for school classes

School classes can visit the former Stasi prison as part of a guided tour. The memorial also offers seminars and project days for school classes. Due to high demand, you should request an appointment well in advance. There are also training courses and teaching materials available for teachers to download free of charge.

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