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Tränenpalast

Tränenpalast

View of the Tränenpalast (Palace of Tears) in Berlin-Mitte.

During the GDR era, the Tränenpalast was the check-in hall for departures from East to West. An exhibition recalls everyday life in the GDR and the tearful fates.

Farewell and longing, hope and despair, joy and fear: a wide range of personal experiences and emotions are associated with the building erected in 1962 at Friedrichstraße station in Berlin-Mitte. The check-in hall was used by the SED dictatorship until 1990 for departures from the GDR to West Berlin. As a place of painful separation, the architecturally modern pavilion made of steel and glass was soon known in Berlin vernacular as the Tränenpalast (Palace of Tears).

Tränenpalast as a place of overwhelming emotions

Here, Germans from East and West experienced first-hand the impact of the Cold War and division on their lives. The pain of parting after meeting relatives and friends from the other part of Germany dominated their emotions. Anger and fear were added to this during the harassing controls.

Longing and despair gripped many East Germans, for whom this border seemed permanently closed. Those who were allowed to move to West Germany after their application to leave the country was approved felt joy and relief, often clouded by sadness at the loss of their homeland.

Exhibition "Tränenpalast. Site of German Division"

At the historic site, the foundation Haus der Geschichte conveys the effects of division and the border on the everyday lives of Germans. An original control cabin gives an idea of the processing situation. Collapses from exhaustion and more than 200 deaths prove that even a "legal" border crossing at Friedrichstraße station was an ordeal. Long waits and the humiliating check-in process were particularly hard on older people.

Stories from everyday life and states of emergency

Numerous dramatic as well as everyday stories bring the atmosphere of this unique place between East and West to life: For example, the paths of GDR travel cadres and forced expatriates, employees of the Ministry for State Security (MfS) who were smuggled to the West as "scouts" and private travelers from West Germany crossed here.

Last resort: Palace of Tears

East Germans who wanted to escape were also drawn to the Friedrichstraße station border crossing point despite the strict surveillance and an almost perfect control system. Almost all escape attempts failed. In the second half of the 1980s, there were more and more incidents involving people trying to leave the country who entered the Tränenpalast without valid papers. They saw this provocation as the last way out of the GDR, as they hoped to be ransomed by West Germany after their imprisonment.

Tränenpalast loses function after reunification

On November 9, 1989, the border opened at Friedrichstraße station. The reunification process, which was initially open, proceeded rapidly. On July 2, 1990, Berliners celebrated the first direct S-Bahn journey from East to West via Friedrichstraße station. With the end of the division of Germany, the Tränenpalast lost its original function.

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 Address
Reichstagufer 17
10117 Berlin
Phone
+49 (0)30 46 77 77 911
Internet
www.hdg.de
Opening Hours
Monday: closed
Tuesday to Friday: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Accessibility
Information on accessibility at www.hdg.de
Admission Fee
Free

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Source: Stiftung Haus der Geschichte der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Images: Stiftung Haus der Geschichte der Bundesrepublik Deutschland/Axel Thünker | All texts, photographs and graphics on this site are protected by copyright. They may not be copied, reproduced, translated or used in any other way.

Last edited: 4 February 2025