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An stream so narrow you barely got your ankles wet separated a community for more than four decades worth of time. Because of a chance of topography, the fifty residents of Mödlareuth, a small village bordered by coniferous woods, fields and spectacular views, found themselves at the core of the Cold War tensions. They had the unfortunate circumstance to cross Bavaria, in West Germany, and the Thuringian region in the Eastern part, a frontier that was demarcated first by a enclosure and then by a partition. United States military personnel dubbed it Mini Berlin.

Memorialising the Past

Several months after their own wall was opened, and prior to their nation had reunified in 1990, a assembly of residents set about commemorating their heritage. The project is soon to reach completion: on 9 November, the 36th remembrance of the fall of the German barrier, the German-German Museum Mödlareuth will inaugurate. It was publicly inaugurated by the head of state, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, in the first part of October, but the display was not entirely prepared. Speaking to the villagers who endured the old days, Steinmeier said: “You were bystanders of an inhuman separation, which pulled households asunder and turned neighbours into aliens.”

“You were bystanders of an cruel separation, which pulled relatives asunder and turned local residents into aliens.”

Historical Context

Right from its founding in 1810, the hamlet cut across the Bavarian Kingdom and the Principality of Reuss, a princely house most renowned for giving all its male descendants the name Heinrich and numbering them in order by date of birth. As Steinmeier related to the crowd, the quirk was never an obstacle in the manner of the residents gathering in the identical pub, attending the same place of worship and enrolling their young ones to the very same learning center.

Following WWII Split

Then came the global conflict. Immediately after they came, the Russians put up wood stakes by the brook. For a twelve months they seized the whole hamlet, establishing their command in a house on the western side, embellishing it with a picture of Stalin and a communist symbol. The American soldiers convinced them to withdraw to the other side of the stream. For a period, locals could still cross over, though as limitations became stricter they were forced to present ID, even though each person knew who they were, and to come back at after dark.

Intensification of Border Controls

Subsequently, in 1952, came metal barriers and the legal sealing of the border. In 1966, as in Berlin five years earlier, a concrete structure was erected, with landmines, anti-tank obstacles and watchtowers. The villagers could still observe each other by scaling hills, but on the east side gesturing and shouting were banned. A female resident was put on a Stasi watch list for answering “back at you” to a West German local who wished her “good new year”.

Museum Development

It was related to me narratives such as these tales by Robert Lebegern, the museum’s director, who has spent a significant portion of his professional career developing it. Residents were consulted at an early stage about how how long a section barrier they wanted to keep. They chose a portion on the west perimeter, near where a villager succeeded to escape in the darkest hours with a ladder, subsequently the border was significantly strengthened.

Conserved Installations

A pair of observation towers are conserved alongside a collection of tableaux illustrating the most dramatic moments in the hamlet’s chronicle. As we stroll, Robert Lebegern details the rules: no one could approach 5km of the frontier. Rural residents needed particular approval to care for their produce; the spouse could operate the combine harvester but not the two, for fear that they attempted to flee. Military personnel were on duty.

Wider Context

The boundary between West Germany and the German Democratic Republic ran 1,400 kilometers, from the Baltic coast in the northern part to the south in the southern region. Berlin is recalled and honored the most, but in excess of twice as many persons (exceeding 300) died trying to traverse it in provincial zones than in the urban center. Robert Lebegern informs me that 95% of escape attempts were unsuccessful.

Village Existence

Most of Mödlareuth’s residents were farmers or skilled workers, who adapted to residing in the uncertain territory between 2 political systems by staying low-profile and looking after their farms. They nor did they endorsed the East German authorities nor resisted it, Lebegern states.

Tourism

For visitors, however, the village became a type of pilgrimage. Roughly 15k came to see every year, optical devices in possession, to gawp – and then rapidly depart. In 1983, the American president, George Bush, was guided by the German defense official.

Twenty-five years after unification, Tannbach, a television program about a made-up community resembling Mödlareuth, caused fresh attention.

Present-Day Changes

The inauguration of the recently established museum – with a cafe, store, cinema room and sizable car park – is expected to