Oranienburger Strasse

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Oranienburger Strasse
coat of arms
Street in Berlin
Oranienburger Strasse
Oranienburger Strasse 2011,
looking east
Basic data
place Berlin
District center
Created since the 13th century
Hist. Names Spandauer Heerweg
Connecting roads Friedrichstrasse (west)
Rosenthaler Strasse (east)
At the Spandauer Brücke (east)
Buildings see list of cultural monuments in Berlin-Mitte / Spandauer Vorstadt
use
User groups Pedestrian traffic , bicycle traffic , car traffic , public transport

The Oranienburgerstrasse in Berlin district of Mitte connects the Hackescher Markt with the northern end of Friedrichstrasse and lies in the often mistaken as " barn area " designated the western part of the historic suburb of Spandau . It is named after the Brandenburg city ​​of Oranienburg and not to be confused with Oranienstrasse in the Kreuzberg district and the two Oranienburger Strasse in the Berlin districts of Wittenau and Lichtenrade .

The promenade, which is often visited by tourists, offers numerous sights as well as bars, restaurants and cafes, but is also known as the red light district with nocturnal streets .

location

View from the Berlin TV tower to Oranienburger Strasse
Depiction of the New Synagogue around 1865
Oil painting by Emile Pierre Joseph De Cauwer

From Hackescher Markt, Oranienburger Straße runs in a straight line in a north-westerly direction and joins Friedrichstraße almost 50 meters south of the former Oranienburger Tor , the intersection of Chausseestraße / Friedrichstraße with Hannoversche Straße / Torstraße .

The course from Oranienburger Strasse / Friedrichstrasse / Chausseestrasse forms one of the radial arterial roads of the historic center of Berlin .

These include - starting from the center from northwest to southeast - clockwise:

as well as west across the Spree :

history

Beginnings

The street has existed since around the 13th century, initially under the name Spandauer Heerweg . At that time it was the connection from the Spandauer Tor of the Berlin city wall to Spandau . In the 17th century there were arable land here, an electoral dairy farm and several brick and lime barns (stores for quicklime ). As a result of the donation of land by Electress Sophie Charlotte , a loose development had already formed here at the end of the 18th century. From 1703 to 1706 Monbijou Castle was built on Spandauer Heerweg .

Development into an inner-city residential and commercial street

In front of the Spandauer Tor, which was moved slightly to the north, the Hackesche Markt was built after the Berlin fortress was demolished . With the construction of the excise wall, the name Oranienburger Straße became established . However, it was not officially named until June 26, 1824. Now the development of an inner-city street began. The upper class , numerous company offices, public institutions, department stores and, last but not least, Berlin Jews shaped this busy street.

time of the nationalsocialism

Synagogue ruins, 1948

On January 24, 1933, a week before Adolf Hitler was appointed Reich Chancellor , a Jewish museum was set up at 31 Oranienburger Strasse. The building soon came into the possession of the Prussian state, which handed it over to the Studentenwerk . A home for young academics was established in it.

On May 10, 1933, students in SA uniforms, SA people and supporters of the NSDAP gathered in front of this house in order to pull from here with the trucks provided to the book burning on Opernplatz . On November 9, 1938 , the New Synagogue on Oranienburger Strasse also burned , but the fire was extinguished due to the intervention of the police station chief Wilhelm Krützfeld . By Allied air raids in the years 1943/1944 the synagogue, which were Monbijou Castle , the Old Post Office and the lodge building of the Freemasons in Oranienburger Straße 71/72 and numerous other buildings badly damaged.

From the post-war period to the 2010s

During the GDR era, many buildings were only poorly repaired or demolished. The remains of Monbijou Castle were blown up and removed in 1960, as was the relatively little damaged cathedral candidate pen by August Stüler on the corner of Krausnickstraße in 1972 , the area of ​​which was included in the green area. The street was the seat of three important GDR publishing houses, including the Henschel publishing house . Legendary restaurants of the small East Berlin scene were the student café 116 and the Esterhazy cellar .

Despite its close proximity to Friedrichstrasse , Oranienburger Strasse was unable to fully heal its wounds caused by war and neglect, even after the fall of the Wall . However, some of the old buildings and facades have been faithfully restored since the early 1990s. The establishment of the Centrum Judaicum in the New Synagogue and the settlement of numerous artists, including the Kunsthaus Tacheles , have brought new life to the street.

Worth seeing

Monbijoupark

Near the Hackescher Markt, at the site of the demolished Monbijou Castle, is the Monbijou Park , an approximately three- hectare green area. There are several restaurants, studios of the Berlin Art Academy, several recreational sports facilities and a children's swimming pool. The park was redesigned in 1974 and from 2006 to 2007.

New synagogue

The New Synagogue is about halfway up the street (lot number 30) . It is one of the largest synagogues in the city and was started by Eduard Knoblauch from 1859 to 1866 and was completed by Friedrich August Stüler as the main synagogue of the Jewish community in Berlin after his illness . The church is best known for its partially gilded dome.

The synagogue was set on fire during the Reichspogromnacht , but was hardly damaged as the fire was extinguished quickly. During the Second World War , the sacred building was badly damaged by bombs. After the war, damaged parts of the building including the original main synagogue were demolished. The building, which was reconstructed from 1988 to 1993, has been a listed building since the 1970s and serves as a museum.

Oranienburger Strasse 27

The residential and commercial complex at Oranienburger Straße 27 shows a late classicist facade on the front building (built in 1840), while the western courtyard facades show features of the Italian villa style. From Oranienburger Straße 32 there is a passage to Auguststraße via Heckmann-Höfe .

Postfuhramt

Post office on the corner of Tucholskystraße (right)

At the corner of Tucholskystraße (parcels 35/36) is the former Imperial Postfuhramt . The building, built between 1875 and 1881, is crowned by a dome like the New Synagogue. In this case, it is an octagonal brick dome flanked by two wing structures. On the facade of the building there are a total of 26 portraits of well-known personalities who have expanded the postal system. However, one of the portraits is destroyed and the sitter can no longer be identified.

The building was used for its original purpose until 1973, after which it was used for other areas of Deutsche Post , such as the postal newspaper operation, until the fall of the Wall . After the fall of the Wall, the building housed various restaurants and the photo exhibitions of C / O Berlin .

The entire building is now a listed building and should, among other things, be converted into a hotel. After several changes of ownership, it has belonged to the medical company Biotronik since 2012, which is converting the Postfuhramt into a company representation.

Main Telegraph Office

Opposite the Postfuhramt and directly next to Monbijoupark is the building complex of the main telegraph office in Berlin (HTA), which was in operation until 1992 ; it has the postal address Oranienburger Straße 73/76.

The gray plastered building, built between 1910 and 1916, served the Deutsche Post as a telecommunications office during the GDR era ; after the fall of the Wall, it became the property of Deutsche Telekom , which continued to operate it until 1992. One of the largest pneumatic tube systems in Germany was installed in the premises and was shut down in 1977. The completely preserved systems could be viewed until the end of November 2008 as part of a guided tour by the Berliner Unterwelten association . The future of the building complex and the relics of the pneumatic tube depends on the group of investors who have acquired the ensemble and who want to convert it into an office and commercial building.

Kunsthaus Tacheles

Kunsthaus Tacheles

Shortly before the confluence with Friedrichstrasse is the ruin of the Friedrichstrasse Passage, built between 1907 and 1909 . In the 1980s, the East Berlin administration began demolishing the passage, which was partially destroyed in World War II. After the fall of the Wall in February 1990, around 50 artists occupied the remains and prevented it from being completely demolished. The name Kunsthaus Tacheles became established; it developed into an alternative cultural center. Craftsmen, discos , cafés, studios and a cinema with two halls attracted visitors from all over the world. The ruinous structure has been a listed building since the late 1990s. After several rounds of discussion, tenders and demonstrations, the Tacheles was cleared in September 2012. It is now owned by an American investor. The future is unclear.

Legend of the "ghost wall"

"Ghost Wall"

According to a myth , an old house wall at Oranienburger Strasse 39/40 is known as a “ghost wall”. After a story that has been told mainly in East Berlin since the early 1980s , the ghosts of two children appear on the street at times and then disappear shortly after at number 39/40. The appearance and origin of the children are controversial, as they supposedly only appear for a short time and are not clearly recognizable. The crux of the legend, however, is that children grant a humble and unselfish wish for a few pennies (or cents later). A row of coins is therefore in the mortar of the wall west of the neighboring bar.

Public transport

tram

Oranienburger Strasse has been used by trams since July 29, 1875. The Great Berlin Horse Railway opened a line between Monbijouplatz, Moabit and Charlottenburg that day . Around 1883 it was extended to the east to Hackescher Markt. Between 1945 and 1951, tram traffic in the street was idle. The M1 and M5 lines are currently running in the street and thus provide a connection in the direction of Friedrichstraße as well as to the main train station and Hohenschönhausen .

Oranienburger Strasse S-Bahn station

Access to the S-Bahn station

The S-Bahn station Oranienburger Straße is located below the intersection with Tucholskystraße . The station was opened on May 28, 1936 as part of the north-south tunnel . The station has two tracks with a central platform . Like the other stations along the route, the walls have brown-gray tiles . The station name is shown in broken sans serif .

The station was closed between August 13, 1961 and July 2, 1990. The trains of the West Berlin S-Bahn passed without stopping and only stopped again after the sector border or at Friedrichstrasse station . After the fall of the Wall, the Oranienburger Strasse station was the first of the “ ghost stations ” to be reopened.

Movies

  • The Oranienburger Strasse. Documentary, Germany, 2012, 44 min., Book: Lutz Rentner, director: Frank Otto Sperlich, production: Noahfilm, RBB , series: Mysterious Places, first broadcast: August 28, 2012 by RBB, summary ( memento from February 11, 2013 in Web archive archive.today ) from RBB.

literature

Web links

Commons : Oranienburger Straße  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Oranienburger Strasse 27, photo from 1993
  2. ↑ Institute for Monument Preservation (Ed.): The architectural and art monuments of the GDR. Capital Berlin-I . Henschelverlag, Berlin 1984, p. 279 ff .
  3. ↑ KunstHof Berlin.
  4. ↑ Photo: Oranienburger Ecke Tucholsky 1993 ; Heckmann Höfe today ( memento from December 24, 2013 in the Internet Archive ), photo: passage to Auguststrasse.
  5. ↑ Meeting of the Committee for Urban Development of BVV Mitte, August 30, 2011. ( Memento of the original from April 12, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / blog.lebenswerte-mitte.de
  6. ↑ New owner Biotronik begins renovation. ( Memento of the original from July 29, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. In: Berliner Woche , January 9, 2014 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.berliner-woche.de
  7. ↑ I always wanted to be an entrepreneur. In: Der Tagesspiegel , September 24, 2006.
  8. ↑ Ghost Wall. In: Goethe-Institut : Meet the Germans from January 19, 2012.
  9. ^ Siegfried Münzinger: The depots of the Berlin trams . In: Berliner Verkehrsblätter . Volume 6, 1969, pp. 95 .

Coordinates: 52 ° 31 ′ 31 ″  N , 13 ° 23 ′ 28 ″  E