Technical introduction to the virtual learning landscape: (please read it in a fresh, engaging way, aimed at pupils in higher grades)
Welcome to the 360° learning landscape of the Shivlas-grund Border Museum.
Explore ten locations along a part of the former border between Turingia and Hess-e around the Shivlas-grund Border Museum. Find out how the border system worked, how the SED dictatorship was able to maintain this system for three decades and what impact this had on people in East and West.
During your discovery tour, you can use the menu bar on the left-hand side to find your way around. This will take you to all the locations and their respective topics.
Alternatively, you can also use the interactive map at the top right. Or simply click on the flag for the next location. A short audio introduction awaits you at each location, which you can pause or restart using the play button. You will also find interactive elements here, such as a button that shows you the previous borderline.
The most important element, however, is the green pin. There's a lot to discover here.
Presentations for 11 different stations (please read it in a fresh, engaging way, aimed at pupils in higher grades)
Han-shtein Castle near hRimbach was on the eastern side of the border. The GDR border troops controlled the border around the castle and the village. On the west side were the West German Border Guard and the customs. Officially, they all had the same mission: to protect their own state border. And yet their tasks and duties on duty at the border differed, sometimes considerably.
Ludvishtein youth castle was located on the west side of the border. It was a popular destination for clubs, youth groups and schools. This was also due to its proximity to the inner-German border. The GDR border fortifications were clearly visible from the west in many places. In other places, too, the border attracted visitors from West Germany and abroad every year. A veritable border tourism developed.
Ludvishtein Castle was built in 1415 by Landgrave Ludwig the First. It served as an official and administrative seat and at the same time took on a protective function on the border to the Eichsfeld. Ludvishtein Castle was thus the direct counterpart to the nearby Hanstein Castle. In the course of time, the castle lost its importance and fell into disrepair. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Van-der-vergel, a grouping of the European youth movement, rediscovered the abandoned structure. They restored the castle and made it a popular hiking destination for youth groups of all kinds. Today, the castle still houses a youth hostel. There is also a youth education centre and the archive of the German youth movement. The offers and programmes are aimed at school classes, youth associations, scouts as well as music, dance and theatre groups. Every year, about 15,000 guests visit the castle.
The village of Linda-verra was on the eastern side of the border. The state border between the GDR and the Federal Republic of Germany ran through the middle of the Verra River. The GDR border fortifications ran directly along the edge of the village. For the inhabitants of such border villages, strict rules applied in everyday life - a challenge especially for the youth in the restricted area.
The village of Vahlhausen was on the eastern side of the border. The official state border between the GDR and the Federal Republic of Germany ran through the middle of the Verra River here. The GDR border fortifications stood directly on the riverbank. In the village there was a barracks of the border troops, a kindergarten and a church in need of restoration. Many residents worked in agriculture. It seemed quiet in Vahlhausen. Until suddenly, in August 1989, shots were fired on the riverbank of the Verra - shots at the GDR.
Halfway between Vahlhausen and the town of Bad Sooden-Allendorf is an inconspicuous place called "Vasa-feldt". Here, in 1945, the Soviet army built the first barrier as a checkpoint at the crossing to the American occupation zone. In 1952, the GDR completely closed off its border with the Federal Republic of Germany. The residents of Vahlhausen and Bad Sooden-Allendorf could now no longer visit each other. In the following decades, many people left Vahlhausen. Those who stayed had to come to an arrangement with the border. And although some had never lost hope, by the end of the 1980s almost no one believed that the border would be opened.
After the National Socialist dictatorship and the Second World War, Germany was divided by the Allies in 1945. The Schifflersgrund, a valley on the border between Thuringia and Hesse, was now in the Soviet occupation zone and from 1949 in the GDR. In 1952, the GDR sealed off its border with West Germany and gradually established an almost insurmountable border system - with a major impact on the lives of people in East and West. The traces of this border can still be seen and felt today. Even here at Shivlas-grund, where there was a fatal escape attempt in 1982.
The village of Sickenberg originally belonged to Hesse and was initially in the American occupation zone after the end of the Second World War. However, due to an exchange of territory in September 1945, Sickenberg became part of the Soviet zone practically overnight and was thus on the eastern side of the border. In the first few years, the residents were still able to cross the border with the help of transit permits. But on 26 May 1952, the GDR completely closed its border to West Germany. Shortly afterwards, there were numerous forced resettlements in the villages directly on the border.
The village of As-bach originally belonged to Hesse and was initially in the American occupation zone after the end of the Second World War. However, due to an exchange of territory in September 1945, As-bach found itself practically overnight in the Soviet zone and from 1949 in the GDR. On 26 May 1952, the GDR completely sealed off its border to West Germany and built up an almost insurmountable border system in the following years and decades. In the mid-1980s, this border system was in its highest stage of construction.
The Iberg belongs to the village of Asbach and was located on the eastern side of the border. From 1952 onwards, it was located in the 500-metre protective strip and was not allowed to be entered by civilians. Members of the GDR border troops regularly patrolled here along the patrol road and through the forest. And nevertheless, some people managed to escape from the GDR at this point.
The Gobert is a forested mountain range between Hesse and Thuringia. The border ran right over this mountain pass. The border fortifications of the GDR cut up the landscape and caused great damage to nature. At the same time, however, the border also created an area almost untouched by humans, where many rare animal and plant species found a place of retreat. Conservationists in various regions along the border discovered this special biodiversity and established cross-border contacts. In 1989, they met in Hof, Franconia, and signed a resolution to protect the border area as a "Green Belt".
Explanation of a displayed map:
Map by Karl-Heinz Wehr with escape route drawn in, created in 1961. This map comes from the private property of Karl-Heinz Wehr. As a budding forester, he took it with him on his countless walks through the forests and drew in his favourite places. Later, he used the map to plan his escape route through the I-ysh-feldt. However, he did not draw the route completely, because otherwise he might have provided decisive evidence of his activities as an escape helper in the event of an inspection. Only after his own escape did Karl-Heinz Wehr complete the route on the map.
Voice-Over (Old man):
I don't know what criteria were used to determine who was evacuated and who was not. It was purely arbitrary, there was no possibility of appeal. It was announced that you had to have packed your things by 6pm that night. Then you will be evacuated. Where to? Nobody knew that either. The village was surrounded at around 6 a.m. on June 6th, 1952, not just Sickenberg, but everyone else too, with an incredible number of people. The FDJ (Free German Youth) and company troops, and whoever else they called in, the municipal police, traffic police, everything that could be called in was used.
Voice-Over (Old man):
My parents and siblings managed to escape immediately. It was made possible in a pretty crazy way: I was already living with my aunt in the West. My father had given me a tip-off: they were going to try to leave around 6 o'clock. I then told the Federal Border Guard here, who were very active at the border. As the border wasn't so close back then, you could still shout and communicate with each other. It was a very short distance from the house. An officer from the border guards said, yes, the best thing is to do a diversionary manoeuvre down there in the valley at 6 p.m. At 6 p.m. we'll shoot in the air a few times, then they'll think there's something going on down there and meanwhile they can run through quickly at the top. And that's exactly what happened. The policemen got nervous because of the shooting down there. That was the signal for my parents to go through up there now. They didn't even realise that on the other side. There were no fortifications until then, they only started with posts and simple willow wires and barbed wire in the following days. There were no firing orders back then.
Radio announcement after a death at the border:
At around 3.30 p.m., an unknown man approached the GDR border from the eastern side with a shovel excavator. When the refugee reached the concrete path in front of the metal barrier fence, he raised the front loader of his tractor, climbed into the shovel and from there jumped over the fence with the self-firing systems and automatic killing machines into the West. At this moment he was discovered by a patrol of the GDR border troops. In accordance with the new regulations of the NVA (National People's Army), a warning call was issued, warning shots were probably also fired and then eyewitnesses claim to have observed how the man was hit by 8 to 9 targeted shots and collapsed on the eastern side of the border fence. The body remained motionless there for more than an hour. According to the criminal investigation department and the Federal Border Police, the man was already dead at this moment. Western rescue services were unable to help, and although the escaped man had already scaled the fence and was only 40 metres away from the Western observers, he was still lying on GDR territory.
Letter read aloud from a young man to his sister:
Dear sister, unfortunately I have to tell you the worst today. I assume you've already heard about these things on the radio. Many people have been forcibly evacuated along the zone border, unfortunately including our loved ones. They were able to take furniture with them on two lorries. They had to leave all their cattle behind. Today I heard from Erna that the cattle were all coming down to Dietzen-rode.
Text for an ingenious night panorama with a starry sky:
Here in the UNESCO Rhuun Biosphere Reserve, you can still find almost natural nocturnal landscapes. These areas are important and valuable because, in addition to the beauty of the starry sky, they also provide a habitat for numerous diurnal and nocturnal animals and plants. In 2014, the biosphere reserve was even recognised as an International Star Park.
First voice-over over young man (moderation)
The Birx mill has stood down here on a small stream since at least 1585. Its immediate location on the inner-German border was the undoing of its owners, the Loyt-becher family. On October 3rd,1961 , at 6 a.m., the family and their almost five-year-old daughter Christa were forced to resettle as part of Aktion Kornblume. Barely a year later, the mill was demolished - or razed, as it is called in this context.
Second voice-over over young man (moderation)
The border closure also had consequences for nature in the FRG: Hardly any construction took place in the so-called zone border area, as economic development was severely restricted by the border. Some roads even ended in the middle of nowhere.
Here, on the Bavarian side, lies the Schvart-sez-moor Moor, one of the most important raised moorlands in Central Europe. It has been protected from peat extraction since 1939 and is home to very rare and endangered animal and plant species. Since 1991, it has been one of the specially protected core zones in the UNESCO Rhuun Biosphere Reserve.
Sage, wie Märchenonkel lesen:
A long time ago, a beautiful town or, as others would call it, a large village sank into the Black Moor because the inhabitants would not depart from their sinful ways.
This place was replaced by an unfathomably deep, black lake, which was gradually covered by a dense blanket of bog except for the few black holes. However, life has not yet died in the depths of the moor. For when the inhabitants of the sunken village hurry to their church and repentantly pray for salvation there, the moor roars violently and black, muddy water ferments out of the so-called ponds. Many a person lying down on the edge of the moor has also heard the tower clock strike and the roosters crow from the depths. Only three virgins from the sunken village were allowed to come up from the moor from time to time.
They were called the Moor Virgins in the neighbourhood and regularly came to the fairground dance in Voosen-saxen. But when they were held back there for a while, they sadly left the dancing ground.
The next morning, one of the ponds was blood-red in colour. No one has seen the Moor Virgins in Voosen-saxen since. At night, only their souls hover over the moor as will-o'-the-wisps together with those of the others who sank there.
Voice-over over an old news report:
At around 3.30 p.m., an unknown man approached the GDR border from the eastern side with a shovel excavator. When the refugee reached the cemented path in front of the metal mesh fence, he raised the front loader of his tractor, climbed into the excavator and from there jumped over the fence with the self-firing systems and automatic killing machines into the West. At this moment he was discovered by a patrol of the GDR border troops. In accordance with the new NVA regulations, a warning call was issued and warning shots were fired. Eyewitnesses claim to have observed how the man was hit by 8 to 9 well-aimed shots and collapsed on the eastern side of the border fence. The body remained motionless there for more than an hour. According to the criminal investigation department and the Federal Border Police, the man was already dead at this time. Western rescue services were unable to help, and although the fleeing man had already scaled the fence and was only 40 metres away from the Western observers, he was still lying on GDR territory.
Voice-over for another elderly gentleman:
The Schar-floh estate was over 700 years old. Going to Schar-floh was always an experience. At cherry time, people chatted under the old lime trees and enjoyed fresh cherry cake baked by "Schäfers Anna", the daughter of the old shepherd who worked at Schar-floh. There were so many cherries on Schar-floh that they were sold to fruit merchants in Tre-ffurt.
There were many field names around the Schar-floh estate, which can be traced back to events or peculiarities of earlier years: There is the Baumsche Wiese and the Baumsche Holz, there is a Schaf-weg, along which the shepherd is said to have driven the sheep. Then there is the Kirch-weg, which is said to have been used by the inhabitants of Karnberg when they went to church in Wende-hausen. There is also a Knippgen-veig, a Tauben-veigweg, a Futzen-veig, a Krommer-Veig [...] These are just a few examples of the names of the fields.
