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An brook so low you scarcely got your feet wet separated a village for over four decades. Because of a chance of topography, the fifty locals of Mödlareuth, a tiny settlement bordered by pine forests, meadows and breathtaking scenery, found themselves at the core of the Cold War conflict. They had the misfortune to cross the Bavarian region, in the Federal Republic of Germany, and Thuringia in the Soviet sector, a boundary that was marked first by a enclosure and then by a barricade. American soldiers called it Small Berlin.

Preserving History

A few months after their own division was torn down, and even before their country had become one in 1990, a assembly of local people started documenting their past. The project is soon to come to fruition: on 9 November, the 36th remembrance of the fall of the German barrier, the German-German Museum Mödlareuth will inaugurate. It was officially launched by the head of state, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, in the beginning of October, but the exhibition wasn’t quite prepared. Speaking to the villagers who experienced the former times, Steinmeier said: “You were bystanders of an cruel split, which ripped relatives into pieces and turned neighbours into strangers.”

“You were witnesses of an cruel division, which ripped relatives apart and turned neighbors into strangers.”

Historical Origins

Starting at its establishment in 1810, the community straddled the Royal Bavaria and the Princely State of Reuss, a royal family most famous for giving all its male descendants the designation Heinrich and labeling them in order by birth. As Steinmeier informed the gathering, the peculiarity never stood in the manner of the inhabitants gathering in the very same pub, going to the very same religious building and sending their children to the identical learning center.

Following WWII Split

Then came the second world war. As soon as they came, the Soviet forces installed wooden posts by the creek. For a twelve months they seized the complete community, setting up their command in a house on the western side, adorning it with a picture of Stalin and a red star. The US forces persuaded them to pull back across the creek. For a while, residents could continue to cross over, though as controls became stricter they were required to show identification, even though everyone was aware who they were, and to return at evening.

Increase of Border Measures

After that, in 1952, came barbed wire and the formal sealing of the border. In 1966, as in Berlin previously in 1961, a barrier was built, with explosives, anti-tank obstacles and guard posts. The locals could still view each other by scaling hills, but on the Soviet side signaling and calling out were banned. One woman was put on a East German secret police surveillance list for answering “back at you” to a West German local who greeted her “happy new year”.

Heritage Site Creation

I was told stories including these incidents by Robert Lebegern, the head of the institution, who has dedicated a significant portion of his professional career creating it. Villagers were consulted early on about how much barrier they wished to maintain. They opted for a section on the Bavarian edge, close to where a villager was able to get away in the darkest hours with a scaling tool, subsequently the border was significantly strengthened.

Preserved Buildings

A pair of watchtowers are conserved alongside a set of exhibits showing the most dramatic dates in the hamlet’s chronicle. As we stroll, Lebergen details the restrictions: not a single person could come within 5km of the border. Agricultural workers needed special permission to look after their produce; the husband or wife could work the agricultural equipment but never the pair, in case they attempted to escape. Military personnel were on duty.

Larger Background

The border between West Germany and the German Democratic Republic ran 1,400 kilometers, from the Baltic Sea in the northern part to this location in the southern region. Berlin is recalled and memorialised the most, but more than twice as many persons (well over 300) died trying to traverse it in provincial zones than in the big city. Robert Lebegern reminds me that 95% of escape attempts failed.

Village Life

The greater part of Mödlareuth’s locals were farmers or craftsmen, who adapted to living in the grey zone between a pair of ideological spheres by keeping their heads down and tending to their land. They nor did they endorsed the East German authorities nor fought it, Robert Lebegern clarifies.

Tourism

For sightseers, however, the settlement became a sort of destination. About 15,000 came to see annually, viewing tools in their hands, to stare – and then swiftly go away. In 1983, the American president, George Bush, was shown around by the German defence minister.

Twenty-five years after merger, the television series, a television program about a made-up village similar to Mödlareuth, caused fresh interest.

Present-Day Changes

The opening of the recently established museum – with a restaurant, store, movie theater and sizable parking lot – is probable to