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92-481: Originally called Friedrichstraßenpassage , it was built in 1907–1908 as a department store opposite the synagogue . During World War II it served as a Nazi prison for a short while. Under GDR authorities it was later partially demolished. After the Berlin Wall had come down in 1989, it was taken over by artists, who called it Tacheles , Yiddish for "straight talking". The building contained studios and workshops,

184-663: A Tacheles 3D online art gallery , to open up new rooms for the Tacheles artists, and to continue the spirit of Tacheles online. The association Artprotacheles aims at expanding the idea of Tacheles through Mobile Atelier Projects and has already realised the first one in Berlin Friedrichshain. A few of the Tacheles artists have moved to a property in Marzahn . The property was sold to a New York firm in September 2014. Lead architects for

276-409: A 1973 study, NVA leaders from the late 1950s through the 1960s came predominantly from working-class backgrounds, with few from middle-class or professional families and no representatives of the aristocracy present in the upper echelons. Excepting specialized military or political instruction, most NVA leaders reported primary school as their highest level of formal education. The NVA disbanded with

368-401: A Hemdbluse, worn without a shirt, trousers, and a visored service cap. The winter service uniform featured a tunic with four large buttoned-down patch pockets, a black waist belt, the service cap, breeches, shirt, tie, and pants belt; high boots were reserved for officers and NCOs. A long, heavy, belted greatcoat was also part of the winter uniform. With a few details, the semi-dress uniform was

460-399: A ceremonial dagger worn on the left side and fastened to a silver-gray parade belt. Officers in guards of honor, as well as officers of cadet schools when on parade, carried sabers. In winter, a greatcoat , scarf, and gloves were worn. Naval officers wore dark blue uniforms with a peaked cap while ratings wore sailor caps. The summer service uniform for officers was a bloused jacket , called

552-539: A charity helping poor Jews, who had been excluded from government benefits. On 5 April 1940 the Jüdisches Nachrichtenblatt was required to announce that services in the New Synagogue would not be held until further notice; this was the usual way Nazi prohibitions were publicised. Congregants were requested to evacuate their belongings from their shelves in the prayer hall by Monday 8 April. The main hall

644-495: A graduate-student stipend. After the reform of 2005, service in the NVA became known as "served outside of the Bundeswehr ". Many former NVA officers feel bitter about their treatment after unification. While receiving only minimal pensions, few have been able to find jobs except as laborers or security guards. Former NVA officers are not permitted to append their NVA rank to their name as

736-554: A new provisional executive board competent only for the eastern sector, and thus divided the Jewish community into an eastern and a western one (21 January 1953). In 1958 the Jewish Community of East Berlin was prompted to demolish the ruined rear sections of their building, including the soot-blackened ruin of the main prayer hall, leaving only the less-destroyed front section. The damaged, but mostly preserved, central dome on top of

828-476: A nightclub, and a cinema. Outside, the garden featured an open-air exhibition of metal sculptures as well as galleries and studios for sculptors and painters. The building was constructed over the course of 15 months in 1907 and 1908 under the watch of the imperial building consellor ( kaiserlicher Baurat ) Franz Ahrens . The building complex stretched from Friedrichstraße to Oranienburger Straße. The shopping arcade had entrances from both sides and served to connect

920-575: A possible Soviet invasion, but the declaration of martial law in Poland (13 December 1981) averted the crisis. The NVA went into a state of heightened combat readiness on several occasions, including the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia, and, for the last time, in late 1989 as protests swept through the GDR. The NVA operated as

1012-665: A professional title; no such prohibition applies to rank attained in the Wehrmacht or in the Waffen-SS during the Nazi era. One of the few former NVA facilities to remain open was a base in Storkow near Berlin, which housed the NVA's camouflage and deception center. This became the Bundeswehr Unit for Camouflage and Deception . The NVA was, in relation to its equipment and training, one of

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1104-548: A professional volunteer army until 1962, when conscription was introduced. The GDR's National Defense Council controlled the armed forces, but the mobile forces came under the Warsaw Pact Unified Command. Political control of the armed forces took place through close integration with the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), which vetted all officers. Military training (provided by the school system) and

1196-588: A quilted stone gray padded suit without a camouflage pattern was worn over the service uniform. Later winter uniforms were also of the same camouflage pattern as the summer variant. The winter uniform also included a fur pile cap or a steel helmet, boots, knitted gray gloves, belt, and suspenders. Seasonal considerations and weather governed the kind of work uniforms worn. Generally, reconditioned articles of service uniforms (field, semi-dress, and padded winter uniforms) were dyed black and issued for all types of fatigue and maintenance details. Coveralls are also used by

1288-454: A violin concert with Albert Einstein in 1930. With an organ and a choir, the religious services reflected the liberal developments in the Jewish community of the time. One of the concerts that occurred here was a Sabbath evening service composed by Jacob Weinberg (1879–1956) and conducted by estimed conductor Chemjo Winawer. Winawer had been looking for a religious piece to conduct here and he discovered Jacob Weinberg's work. According to

1380-589: Is a mid-19th century synagogue built as the main place of worship for the city's Jewish community , succeeding the Old Synagogue which the community outgrew. Because of its Moorish style and resemblance to the Alhambra , the New Synagogue is an important architectural monument in Germany. The building was designed by Eduard Knoblauch . Following Knoblauch's death in 1865, Friedrich August Stüler took responsibility for

1472-409: Is an eye-catching landmark. The central dome is flanked by two smaller pavilion-like domes on the two side-wings. Beyond the façade was the front hall and the main hall with 3,000 seats. Due to the unfavourable alignment of the property, the building's design required adjustment along a slightly turned axis. The Neue Synagoge is also a monument of early iron construction. The new building material

1564-411: The Bundeswehr ) and all soldiers over the age of 55 were discharged. Until 1 March 2005, Germany listed time served in the NVA as time "served in a foreign military". Service in the NVA did not count for points towards federal pensions in the unified Germany . Retired NVA soldiers and officers received only minimal pensions after unification: a thirty-year veteran would receive a pension smaller than

1656-479: The Kasernierte Volkspolizei wore the same basic uniform. Several later modifications were introduced, but the style and cut remain fundamentally the same. There were a variety of uniforms worn according to the setting (work or social) and season (summer or winter). Most uniforms (service, semi-dress, and parade) were stone grey, a brownish-grey colour that was conspicuously different from the grey-green of

1748-770: The Wehrmacht . With the exceptions of the People's Navy, whose dark-blue uniforms were consistent with the styles of most navies around the world, and the Combat Groups of the Working Class ( Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse ), who wore their own olive-green fatigue uniforms, all NVA armed services, the Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards Regiment, the Border Troops of the German Democratic Republic , and

1840-641: The Luftwaffe . After 1999, 22 of the 24 aircraft were given to Poland . Before the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, military service in the GDR was voluntary, though the Free German Youth and public schools mounted intensive recruitment drives, and service in the NVA was often a prerequisite for career advancement. Compulsory military service had been introduced in 1956 in West Germany , one year after

1932-455: The Berlin Wall where they were responsible for numerous deaths . The NVA was dissolved on 2 October 1990 with the GDR before German reunification , and its facilities and equipment were handed over to the Bundeswehr (the armed forces of West Germany ), which also absorbed most of its personnel below the rank of non-commissioned officer . The German Democratic Republic (GDR) established

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2024-743: The German Cross in the Wehrmacht during the Second World War. In its first six years the NVA operated as an all-volunteer force. ( West Germany , in contrast, re-introduced universal military service in 1956.) The GDR introduced conscription in 1962. According to the Parallel History Project on Cooperative Security: the NVA was incorporated in the Warsaw Pact and consisted of army, air force/air defense (Luftstreitkräfte/Luftverteidigung), and

2116-751: The Jüdische Gemeinde zu Berlin , Berlin's mainstream Jewish congregation, in 1946. In the immediate post-war years, there were the anti-Semitic manifestations in Czechoslovakia ( Slánský trial , November 1952), arrests and interrogations of Jews in East Berlin and East Germany (January 1953), and the Soviet Doctors' plot (started on 13 January 1953). Members of the Jüdische Gemeinde in East Berlin, hoping to spare themselves from further persecution, formed

2208-583: The Peaceful Revolution that led to the downfall of the GDR's communist government, some NVA forces were placed on alert but were never deployed against protesters. At the same time, the Soviet government ordered its troops in the GDR to remain in barracks. After the forced retirement of SED and state leader Erich Honecker and other conservatives from the ruling Politburo at the height of the crisis in October 1989,

2300-526: The People's Police . Officers' uniforms differed from those of enlisted personnel by better quality and texture cloth. The field and service uniforms were normal attire for most day-to-day functions. Several basic categories of uniforms were worn: The parade uniform for ground forces officers was the semi-dress/walking-out tunic with all authorized orders, awards and decorations attached, breeches and riding boots , steel helmet, white shirt, dark-gray necktie, and

2392-958: The armed forces of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) from 1956 to 1990. The NVA was organized into four branches: the Landstreitkräfte (Ground Forces), the Volksmarine (Navy), the Luftstreitkräfte (Air Force) and the Grenztruppen (Border Troops). The NVA belonged to the Ministry of National Defence and commanded by the National Defense Council of East Germany , headquartered in Strausberg 30 kilometers (19 mi) east of East Berlin . From 1962, conscription

2484-635: The 1930s. In the early 1930s, the building was increasingly used by the National Socialist German Workers' Party (Nazi) party members. In the mid-1930s, the German Workers Front established offices for Gau Kurmark and became owners of the building in 1941. At the same time it became the central office for the SS . In 1943 the skylights were closed and the corresponding ridge turrets removed, so that French war prisoners could be held in

2576-576: The 1960s most of these World War II veterans had retired. (The West German Bundeswehr was even more reliant on Wehrmacht veterans, who initially comprised the majority of its commissioned ranks.) The following list includes the NVA generals who were awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross in the Wehrmacht during the Second World War. The following list includes the NVA generals who were awarded

2668-507: The Fundus Group had bought the site from the Berlin government in the mid-1990s. Because it was in no hurry to do anything with the building, it gave the artists a 10-year lease in 1998 at a nominal rent of 1 DM (about 0.50 EUR). This contract was then extended but expired at the end of 2009, at which point the artists again became squatters. By this time, the Fundus Group had become insolvent, so

2760-487: The GDR's National Defence Council authorised the formation of Baueinheiten (construction units) for men of draft age who "refuse military service with weapons on the grounds of religious viewpoints or for similar reasons". The construction soldiers wore uniforms and lived in barracks under military discipline, but were not required to bear arms and received no combat training. In theory, they were to be used only for civilian construction projects. The GDR therefore became

2852-548: The Hamburg-based HSH Nordbank , to which the Fundus Group owed money, decided to sell the property. By 2010, a division inside the Tacheles cooperative developed. "Upstairs" lived the artists from the coterie around organizer Martin Reiter, chairman of Tacheles e.V., the association that was formed in 1994 but went bankrupt in 2010. "Downstairs" around 20 businesses including High End Kino 54 and Café Zapata, together with

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2944-737: The Jewish Telegraph Service article of 26 October 1934, the Sabbath eve liturgy was performed in front of a packed house of 3,000 in this synagogue on 25 October 1936. It was met with an enthusiastic ovation. The work comprises twelve different musical compositions, all based on the prayers recited during the Sabbath Eve religious service. The collaboration was such a success that Winawer collaborated with Jacob Weinberg again on 5 September 1938 when he conducted Weinberg's prize-winning opera "The Pioneers of Palestine" (aka "Hechalutz" or "Die Chalutzim"),

3036-490: The Johannishof artists who were not represented by the e.V., formed Gruppe Tacheles. On April 4, 2011, the owner HSH Nordbank scheduled an eviction, but it was not carried out. Instead, on the next day, the "downstairs group" left the building peacefully in return for a payment of EUR 1 million from an anonymous source. Eighty "upstairs" artists vowed to stay and continue to use their ateliers and metal workshops. One week later,

3128-505: The NVA had advisors in Algeria , Angola , Ethiopia , Guinea , Iraq , Libya , Mozambique , South Yemen , and Syria . When the Soviet Union prepared to occupy Czechoslovakia in 1968, the GDR government committed the 7th Panzer Division and the 11th Motorised Infantry Division to support the intervention (assigned to 20th Guards Army and 1st Guards Tank Army respectively), becoming

3220-590: The NVA was the Ministry for National Defense ( Ministerium für Nationale Verteidigung ) headquartered in Strausberg near East Berlin . NVA administration was divided into the following commands: The National People's Army had a Military Intelligence Agency Whose Purpose was to “prevent surprise by the enemy.” The first military units of the Central Training Administration ( Hauptverwaltung Ausbildung – HVA ) were dressed in police blue. With

3312-609: The NVA's reserves would have nearly doubled its strength. GDR authorities also had at their disposal the internal security troops of the Ministry of the Interior (the Kasernierte Volkspolizei ) and the Ministry for State Security (the Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards Regiment ) along with the 210,000 strong party auxiliary " Combat Groups of the Working Class " ( Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse ), who were available in times of war. The highest level of leadership for

3404-717: The National People's Army on 1 March 1956 (six months after the formation of the West German Bundeswehr ) from the Kasernierte Volkspolizei . This formation culminated years of preparation during which former Wehrmacht officers and communist veterans of the Spanish Civil War helped organize and train paramilitary units of the People's Police . Though the NVA featured a German appearance – including uniforms and ceremonies patterned after older German military traditions – its doctrine and structure showed

3496-465: The New Synagogue, the whole Spandauer Vorstadt neighbourhood (lit. "suburb towards Spandau", often confused with the Scheunenviertel ) experienced a revival. Chic restaurants and boutiques opened up in the area, catering to an increasingly bourgeois clientele. In 2007 Gesa Ederberg became the first female pulpit rabbi in Berlin when she became the rabbi of the New Synagogue. Her installation

3588-618: The People’s Navy (Volksmarine). At its peak in 1987, the three NVA services had about 156,000 men under arms altogether. Between 1956 and 1990, about 2.5 million male GDR citizens performed army duty. Like the ruling communist parties of other Soviet satellites, the East German Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED) assured control by appointing loyal party members to top positions and by organizing intensive political education for all ranks. The proportion of SED members in

3680-787: The Protection of the Workers and Farmers' Power". The NVA never took part in full-scale combat, although it participated in a support role in the suppression of the Prague Spring of 1968, provided medical support during the Soviet–Afghan War , and NVA officers often served as combat advisers in Africa. Some of the first NVA advisors went to the Republic of the Congo in 1973. During the 1980s at various times

3772-647: The United States to avoid Nazi persecution. During the November Pogrom (9 November 1938), colloquially euphemised as "Kristallnacht", a Nazi mob broke into the Neue Synagoge , desecrated the Torah scrolls, smashed the furniture, piled up such contents as would burn in the synagogue interior, and set fire to them. Lieutenant Otto Bellgardt , the police officer of the local police precinct on duty that night, arrived on

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3864-571: The West German military was established, but the GDR held back from this step until 1962. The situation changed when the border was sealed in August 1961, and five months later the government announced a mandatory service term of 18 months for men. There was, at first, no alternative service for conscientious objectors . This changed in 1964 when, under pressure from the Protestant Church in Germany ,

3956-598: The attic. During the Battle of Berlin the second cellar was flooded by the Nazis and remains underwater today. The building was heavily damaged during World War II , though a large portion of it survived intact. In 1948 the building was taken over by the Free German Trade Union Federation (FDGB) and deteriorated over the course of the next several years. Various retailers and craft businesses temporarily moved into

4048-448: The building was used between 1914 and 1924. In 1924, among other additions to the building, a deep cellar was built. This cellar still exists today and is also known as the Tresorraum . The height of the ceiling in the passage was lowered to that of the stores, which changed the appearance of the building completely. After 1928 the building was used as a show room by the Allgemeine Elektrizitäts-Gesellschaft (General Electric Company). It

4140-415: The building's owner ordered an almost 3m tall wall to be built, separating Oranienburger Straße from the building's courtyard. On September 4, 2012, the remaining 40-60 artists left peacefully, after pressure from HSH Nordbank. Tacheles Metallwerkstatt, the sculpture park, was open until March 2013, when the financial group Nordbank decided to make money out of it. Several artists and programmers created

4232-441: The complex, by registering the building as a historic place. The planned demolition was not delayed however, until the group managed to get the Berlin Round Table to issue a last-minute injunction. The artists' initiative had a new engineering survey done to evaluate the building's structural integrity. The study found that the building was in surprisingly good shape, and it was named a historic landmark shortly thereafter. Its status

4324-420: The congregation, who continued to use it as synagogue until 1940. Besides being used for prayers, the main hall was also used for concerts and lectures, since Jews were banned from other venues. The main prayer hall was last used by the congregation for a concert on Sunday, 31 March 1940. The concert was the last of a series of benefit concerts in aid of the Jüdisches Winterhilfswerk (Jewish Winter Aid Endowment),

4416-493: The current entryway. The movie theater is still used today as a theater area, and after further reconstruction in 1972, it was renamed Camera . The building was slated to be demolished as a result of two engineering opinions from 1969 and 1977; it had not once been renovated, despite relatively continuous and intensive use. A new street was planned on the site and would have created a shortcut between Oranienburger Straße and Friedrichstraße. The demolition began in 1980. The dome

4508-402: The dissolution of the East German government in October 1990. Under the process of "Army of Unity" ( Armee der Einheit ), NVA facilities and equipment were handed over to the Bundeswehr , the federal defense force of the unified Germany. Bundeswehr Eastern Command ( Bundeswehrkommando Ost ) was set up for the control of units or facilities in the territory of former East Germany, and

4600-402: The first deployment of German troops outside Germany for the first time since the Second World War . But the East German participation raised Czech ire, and the two divisions were "kept out of sight in the Bohemian forests " and allowed to travel only at night. In a few days they were withdrawn. In the early 1970s the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany (GSFG) high command assigned to the NVA

4692-403: The first measures taken after the reunification was a survey and securing of weapons and devices by former members of the NVA. The federally operated Materiel Depot Service Gesellschaft (MDSG) was charged with taking custody of and warehousing this equipment. The MDSG employed 1,820 people who were primarily taken from the Bundeswehr . The MDSG was privatised in 1994. Much of the materiel

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4784-479: The first opera on Hebrew / Israeli themes (composed in 1924). It was performed on 5 September 1938, at another Berlin synagogue on Prinzregentenstrasse, as part of the Kulturbund. The Kulturbund was a program that permitted performances of Jewish works in Germany as the Nazi regime escalated. The Nazis did not allow Jewish works to be performed in regular concert halls attended by Aryans, but it did allow such works to be performed in other spaces such as synagogues. It

4876-412: The front section was also torn down in the 1950s. East Berlin's Jewish Community, impoverished and small after the Holocaust (Shoah) and the flight of many surviving members from anti-Semitism , saw no chance to restore it. It was not until the collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1989 that reconstruction of the front section began. From 1988 to 1993, the structurally intact parts of the building close to

4968-400: The golden dome. The congregation occasionally held prayers in this hall until September 1942, when it had to evacuate the front section as well. During World War II the New Synagogue was heavily damaged; it was completely burned after Allied bombing during the Battle of Berlin , a series of British air raids lasting from 18 November 1943 until 25 March 1944. The strike on the New Synagogue

5060-556: The growing militarization of East German society bolstered popular support for the military establishment. From a Leninist perspective, the NVA stood as a symbol of Soviet-East German solidarity and became the model communist institution – ideological, hierarchical, and disciplined. The NVA synthesized communist and Prussian symbolism, naming its officers' academy, the Friedrich Engels Military Academy , after Karl Marx 's co-author Friedrich Engels , and its highest medal after Prussian Army General Gerhard von Scharnhorst . During

5152-486: The influence of the Soviet Army became one of the Warsaw Pact militaries opposing NATO during the Cold War . The majority of NATO officers rated the NVA the best military in the Warsaw Pact based on discipline , thoroughness of training, and the quality of officer leadership. The NVA did not see significant combat but participated in the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, deployed military advisors to communist governments in other countries, and manned

5244-509: The large covered arcade. The building is typically treated as an example of early Modern architecture but exhibits aspects of both Classic and Gothic styles. The complex also housed its own pneumatic tube system for sending mail and materials within the building. A group of individual shareholders hoped to establish a market advantage by capitalizing on a common location. The concept meant that stores would not be strictly separated from one another, but would instead be allowed to overlap. This

5336-413: The local police precinct, and Bellgardt's superior, later covered up for him. Berlin's police commissioner Graf Helldorf only verbally reprimanded Krützfeld for shielding his subordinate and, partly in consequence, Krützfeld has often mistakenly been identified as the rescuer of the New Synagogue . The New Synagogue, like the synagogue in Rykestrasse , remained intact and was subsequently repaired by

5428-618: The lower ranks, especially armor and air force personnel. Officers in technical branches supervising fatigue details wore a laboratory-style smock . High-ranking officers occasionally wore white uniforms (or white jackets), and staff officers were issued distinctive staff service uniforms. Women wore uniforms consisting of jackets, skirts or slacks, blouses, caps, boots or pumps, and other appropriate items according to season and occasion. Personnel, such as paratroopers , motorcyclists, and tank troops, wore additional items with their uniforms identifying them as such. NVA personnel initially wore

5520-400: The majority of its construction as well as for its interior arrangement and design. It was inaugurated in the presence of Count Otto von Bismarck , then Minister President of Prussia , in 1866. One of the few synagogues to survive Kristallnacht , it was badly damaged prior to and during World War II and subsequently much was demolished; the present building on the site is a reconstruction of

5612-402: The new SED leadership ruled out using armed force against the protesters. The manpower of the NVA consisted of some 85,000 soldiers in 1962, climbed to 127,000 by 1967, and remained essentially steady through 1970. In 1987, at the peak of its power, the NVA numbered 175,300 troops. Approximately 50% of this number were career soldiers, while the others were short-term conscripts. According to

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5704-417: The officer corps rose steadily after the early 1960s, eventually reaching almost 95 percent. The NVA saw itself as the "instrument of power of the working class" ( Machtinstrument der Arbeiterklasse ). According to its doctrine, the NVA protected peace and secured the achievements of socialism by maintaining a convincing deterrent to imperialist aggression. The NVA's motto, inscribed on its flag, read: "For

5796-485: The only Warsaw Pact country to provide a non-combat alternative for conscientious objectors. However, fearing that other soldiers would be contaminated by pacifist ideas, the government took care to segregate the construction units from regular conscripts. Moreover, conscripts who chose the alternative service option often faced discrimination later in life, including denial of opportunities for higher education . The NVA had four main branches: In wartime, mobilization of

5888-542: The project development after 2015 were Herzog de Meuron . Construction began in September of 2019 for a mixed-use scheme that follows the trend of the 1990s to fill in vacant land in Berlin with perimeter block buildings, utilizing courtyards and mimicking the traditional urban structure of the city. 52°31′32″N 13°23′19″E  /  52.52556°N 13.38861°E  / 52.52556; 13.38861 New Synagogue (Berlin) The New Synagogue ( German : Neue Synagoge ) on Oranienburger Straße in Berlin

5980-455: The restructuring of the Barracked Police (CIP) in 1952, khaki uniforms similar in shape and colour to those of the Soviet Army were introduced. The desire for a separate "German" and "socialist" military tradition, and the consequent founding of the NVA in 1956, introduced new uniforms which strongly resembled those of the Wehrmacht . They were of a similar cut and made of a brownish-gray, called stone gray , cloth. The dark high-necked collar

6072-498: The ruined street frontage with its entrance, dome and towers, along with only a few rooms behind. It is truncated before the point where the main hall of the synagogue began. The front of the building, facing Oranienburger Straße, is polychrome brickwork , richly ornamented with sculpted bricks and terracotta , accented by coloured glazed bricks . Beyond the entrance, the building's alignment changes to mesh with pre-existing structures. The synagogue's main dome , with its gilded ribs,

6164-440: The ruins, especially on the Friedrichstraße side. The German Travel Agency used the repaired passage section and several floors above ground. Among others, there was an artists' school, a technical school for foreign trade and economics, and office spaces for RFT (Rundfunk- und Fernmelde-Technik), a company dealing with radio and transmission technology. The cellar was used by the National People's Army . The movie theater Camera

6256-429: The same for all ranks and was worn for walking-out purposes (i.e. off-duty and off-post). It consisted of a single-breasted tunic without belt, a silver-gray shirt with dark-gray tie, the service cap, long trousers, and black low-quarter shoes. Officers also wore the tunic with a white shirt. During periods of warm weather, there was the option of omitting the tunic, and furthermore omitting the tie. A double-breasted jacket

6348-437: The scene in the early morning of 10 November and ordered the arsonists to disperse. He said the building was a protected historical landmark and drew his pistol, declaring that he would uphold the law requiring its protection. This allowed the fire brigade to enter and extinguish the fire before it could spread to the fabric of the building, and the synagogue was saved from destruction. Senior Lieutenant Wilhelm Krützfeld, head of

6440-443: The space. In the meantime, however, Tacheles has become a central part of the art, activist, exhibition and communication scenes in Berlin, and is officially registered as Tacheles, e. V. . In 1996 and 1997, politicians, sociologists, architects, and artists discussed the preservation and future use of the complex at Metropolis Berlin, Hochgeschwindigkeitsarchitektur (English: Metropolis Berlin, High Speed Architecture). The building

6532-400: The street, including the façade, the dome, and some rooms behind were restored as the "Centrum Judaicum" ("Jewish Center"); the main sanctuary was not restored. In May 1995, a small synagogue congregation was reestablished using the former women's wardrobe room. The area behind the restored frontage, formerly the main prayer hall, remains an empty space, and is open to visitors. Together with

6624-467: The strong influence of the Soviet Armed Forces . During its first year, about 27 percent of the NVA's officer corps had formerly served in the Wehrmacht . Of the 82 highest command positions, ex- Wehrmacht officers held 61; however, very few of them had served in high ranks. The military knowledge and combat experience of these veterans were indispensable in the NVA's early years, although by

6716-482: The strongest armies in the Warsaw Pact. It was equipped with a large number of modern weapons systems, most of Soviet origin, from which a small portion were given back to the Soviet Union in 1990. The remaining equipment and materiel was still substantial, including large quantities of replacement parts, medical supplies, atomic, biological and chemical warfare equipment, training devices and simulators, etc. One of

6808-501: The two main thoroughfares. The Friedrichstraßenpassage was the second largest of its kind in the city and the only remaining example in Europe of this type of architecture. The construction expenses totaled approximately 7 million German marks . The five-story building was made of reinforced concrete with a colossal ribbed dome. The façade was built to be dependent upon this concrete frame. There were several small businesses on both sides of

6900-539: The wartime mission of capturing West Berlin . The NVA plan for the operation, designated "Operation Centre", called for some 32,000 troops in two divisions, accompanied by the GSFG's Soviet 6th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade . The plan was regularly updated until 1988, when a less ambitious plan that simply aimed at containing Berlin was substituted. In the autumn of 1981 the NVA stood ready to intervene in Poland in support of

6992-536: The way for a new art center. Among the early exhibitors were artist Mark Divo , sculptors the Mutoid Waste Company , musicians Spiral Tribe , theater group DNTT , performance artist Lennie Lee , dancer/ choreographer Sasha Waltz , RA.M.M. Theater, and many others. There was an appreciable amount of disagreement among the East German and West German artists due to their conflicting views and concepts for

7084-497: Was administered by Kurt Singer. The New Synagogue (the Neue Synagogue on Oranienburger Street) survived Kristallnacht, the pogrom of 9–10 November 1938. Unfortunately the equally-grand synagogue on Prinzregentenstrasse did not survive Kristallnacht. It was plundered of its valuables, torched, and ultimately destroyed; only a bronze plaque at the site remains of this magnificent structure. Both Jacob Weinberg and Chemjo Winawer went to

7176-404: Was enabled by the existence of a central point-of-sale terminal, where all customers would pay for their goods. But a mere 6 months after its opening the passage had to file for bankruptcy in August 1908. The complex was then rented by Wolf Wertheim , who in 1909 opened a new department store, which operated until 1914. The building was auctioned off shortly before World War I . It is unclear how

7268-415: Was given free of charge to beneficiaries in the new federal states or other departments, to museums, or to friendly nations in the context of military support for developing countries . The German Federal Intelligence Service secretly sold NVA equipment to several countries, violating international and German laws as well as international treaties. The rest was destroyed. 24 modern MIG-29s became part of

7360-464: Was later removed, except on the coats from 1974 to 1979. Even the NVA's M-56 "gumdrop" army helmet , in spite of its easily noticeable resemblance to well-known Soviet designs, was actually based on a prototype "B / II" helmet that was initially developed for the Wehrmacht by the Institute for Defence Technical Materials Science in Berlin. The helmet had seen trials since 1943, but was not adopted by

7452-427: Was led by Lieutenant General Jörg Schönbohm . Most facilities closed, and equipment was either sold or given to other countries. Most of the NVA's 36,000 officers and NCOs were let go, including all officers above the rank of Oberstleutnant . The Bundeswehr retained only 3,200 – after a demotion of one rank. In addition, all female soldiers (at this point it was still prohibited for women to become soldiers in

7544-477: Was located in the Friedrichstraße gateway area, but was forced to leave in 1958 due to the worsening condition of the building. The presentation hall was dismantled, but was later reopened under the name OTL (Oranienburger Tor Lichtspiele). During the reconstruction work the facade was partially changed and a lobby area was built to house cash registers and checkout aisles. The roof was also rebuilt. This created

7636-477: Was mandatory for all GDR males aged between 18 and 60 requiring an 18-month service, and it was the only Warsaw Pact military to offer non-combat roles to conscientious objectors , known as " construction soldiers " ( Bausoldat ). The NVA reached 175,300 personnel at its peak in 1987. The NVA was formed on 1 March 1956 to succeed the Kasernierte Volkspolizei (Barracked People's Police) and under

7728-464: Was officially recognized after a second survey done in February 1992. In the beginning the center was run by well-known curator Jochen Sandig who expanded the building considerably. In its early days, Tacheles provided both housing and work space for its artist residents. In 1991, the associated housing burnt down and there was considerable suspicion that the fire was started deliberately in order to pave

7820-505: Was opposed by Berlin's senior Orthodox rabbi, Yitzchak Ehrenberg. Jewish services are now held again in the New Synagogue; the congregation is the Berlin community's sole Masorti synagogue. Most of the building, however, houses offices and a museum. The dome may also be visited. National People%27s Army The National People's Army ( German : Nationale Volksarmee , pronounced [natsi̯oˈnaːlə ˈfɔlksʔaʁˌmeː] ; NVA [ɛn faʊ ˈʔaː] ) were

7912-530: Was optional for officers and warrant officers. The summer field uniform for both officers and enlisted consisted of a jacket and trousers originally in Flachtarnenmuster and then in Strichtarn , a dark-brown (later a forest green) raindrop camouflage pattern on a stone-gray background; a field cap, service cap, or steel helmet ; high black boots; and a gray webbing belt with y-strap suspenders. In winter,

8004-530: Was painted in bright colors and a large courtyard behind the building holds several sculptures erected using rubble, debris, vehicles and other objects. It became an art center with a cafe, cinema, performance space, workshops and exhibition space. Tacheles provided inspiration for a scene in the German film Good Bye, Lenin! , according to commentary by director Wolfgang Becker on the US DVD release. A developer called

8096-417: Was recorded in the Berlin police commissioner's bomb damage reports, regularly issued after attacks, for the raid on the night of 22–23 November 1943. The building to the left from the New Synagogue, and the second one to the right at Oranienburger Straße 28, also belonged to Berlin's Jewish Community. These buildings survived the war intact, and it was in the latter that surviving Jews formally reconstituted

8188-484: Was renamed Haus der Technik by the proprietor, the Berliner Commerz- und Privatbank . The AEG used the space to display products and advise customers. The former AEG show room, located at Luisenstraße 35, had been destroyed by a fire on September 15, 1927. The new space covered over 113,000 sq ft (10,500 sq. meters) and used 20 large display cases. One of the first German television transmissions took place here during

8280-635: Was then seized by the Heeresbekleidungsamt III (uniform department No. III) of the Heer (German Army), who used it to store uniforms. The Rykestraße Synagogue was closed and seized by the Heer a week later. The Jewish Community of Berlin continued to use the office rooms in the front section of New Synagogue, including the Repräsentantensaal (hall of the assembly of elected community representatives) below

8372-504: Was torn down and the movie theater closed. The remaining portions of the building were scheduled to be demolished in April 1990. On February 13, 1990, two months before the planned demolition, the group Künstlerinitative Tacheles occupied the building. The group tried to prevent the demolition through discussions with the building management in Berlin-Mitte, which was legally responsible for

8464-446: Was visible in the outside columns, as well as in the dome's construction. Iron was also a core component for the now-lost floor structure of the main hall. The New Synagogue was built to serve the growing Jewish population in Berlin, in particular, immigrants from the East. It was the largest synagogue in Germany at the time, seating 3,000 people. The building housed public concerts, including

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