Moritzplatz Magdeburg Memorial
The memorial Moritzplatz Magdeburg in the Memorials Foundation of Saxony-Anhalt recalls during the Soviet occupation and in the GDR by the judiciary, the German People's Police and the Ministry of State Security for political reasons persecuted and imprisoned.
Memorial and exhibition
It is one of the few memorials in former MfS detention centers where u. a. the original prison house and the “free period cells” can be included in the educational work. In the house you can see the permanent exhibition "In principle, a confession can be obtained from any accused."
The remand prison in Magdeburg-Neustadt 1945–1989 documents the focus of politically motivated persecution in the Soviet occupation zone and in the GDR. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, the prison was involved in the persecution of opponents of the new political system as well as actual and alleged Nazi perpetrators and war criminals. After it was taken over by the MfS in 1958, it served almost exclusively to persecute people who opposed the SED regime or who wanted to leave the GDR. The exhibition, which was developed jointly with the Saxony-Anhalt Citizens' Committee , comprises twelve rooms. In the cell wing, five rooms deal with the history of the prison until it was taken over by the MfS. In the front building, seven rooms, including an interrogator room furnished with original furniture, depict the repression by the MfS and - in relation to this location - the pre-trial detention at the MfS, as well as the autumn of 1989 in Magdeburg.
The historian Sascha Möbius headed the memorial from 2006 to 2011 .
Architecture and history of the building
The listed building was built in 1876 as the Royal Prussian District Court of Magdeburg-Neustadt. The two-story brick building is built in a simple arched style. Exist at the roadside facade two sides risalits , as well as a small tower-like central projection. Originally existing tower and gable tops that shape the building's appearance have not been preserved. A remand prison was also built on the courtyard side. After the judicial use ended in 1940, it was used exclusively as a prison. From 1957 to 1989 it then served as a pre-trial detention center for the Ministry for State Security of the GDR in the Magdeburg district . There were 25 cells for 18 male and 7 female prisoners and 55 prisoners on remand. The alterations and installations that were made during the GDR era, such as the watchtower, outdoor passage, elevation of walls and the inventory, have largely been preserved and are essentially related to their use as a memorial.
The building is listed as a prison in the local monument register under registration number 094 82873.
literature
- Sascha Möbius : "In principle, a confession can be obtained from any accused". The MfS remand prison in Magdeburg-Neustadt from 1957–1970 (= memorials and memorial work in the state of Saxony-Anhalt . H. 6). Edited by the Ministry of the Interior of Saxony-Anhalt, Magdeburg 1999.
- “In principle, a confession can be obtained from any accused”. The remand prison in Magdeburg-Neustadt 1945-1989. Guide for the permanent exhibition of the Moritzplatz Magdeburg Memorial and the Citizens' Committee of Saxony-Anhalt eV, Editor: Alexander Sperk with the assistance of Daniel Bohse, Magdeburg 2012.
- List of monuments Saxony-Anhalt, Volume 14, State capital Magdeburg , State Office for Monument Preservation and Archeology Saxony-Anhalt, Michael Imhof Verlag, Petersberg 2009, ISBN 978-3-86568-531-5 , page 536 f.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Short question and answer Olaf Meister (Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen), Prof. Dr. Claudia Dalbert (Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen), Ministry of Culture March 19, 2015 Printed matter 6/3905 (KA 6/8670) List of monuments Saxony-Anhalt , Magdeburg.pdf, page 2672.
Coordinates: 52 ° 9 ′ 19.4 ″ N , 11 ° 37 ′ 54 ″ E