Beyond the shocking human cost of this conflict, the streets and buildings in innumerable towns, villages, and cities across the continent had been reduced to ruin. Schools, hospitals, churches, and apartments left devastated. In the former Nazi capital of Berlin, an estimated 600,000 apartments had been destroyed, along with many important public buildings.
A massive reconstruction effort would be necessary across Europe to restore the comforts of living while the living struggled to come to terms with the dead.
More than 75 years later, however, war damage is still visible in the present day German capital, with the bullet holes and shrapnel damage preserved – intentionally or not – on the streets of the city.
Much of this damage remains to be found in the former Cold War East of Berlin, as the cash-strapped government of the German Democractic Republic saw little benefit in dealing with many of the dilapidated apartments across the divided city and left the exterior walls of plenty of these structures, in particular, in the same condition as they had been found in May 1945.
In this post, we will be looking at some of the war damage still visible in Berlin’s central Mitte district.
All within walking distance from some of the city’s major landmarks.
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All Photos: Matt Robinson/Berlin Experiences
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