Website Sub-Editor: Isabella Sullivan (Yr 12) Article: Dr. Goward (History Dept)
'Students in front of the Brandenburg Gate'
During the February half-term, a group of nearly 30 North Londoners made a visit to the fascinating German city of Berlin. Through a range of historical visits and cultural experiences, the students gained a real insight into aspects of German life, both past and present. Berlin has a rich mixture of history, from the Prussian Empire, to Weimar, to the Third Reich and the DDR. The visits to the Wannsee Conference Museum and Sachsenhausen concentration camp were particularly moving. All in all, it was a memorable experience for students and staff alike.
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| 'Marx, Engels, NLCS - unite! You have nothing to lose but your Ugg boots!' |
The German Historical Museum (Gabrielle Pereira -Yr 11)
On our first full day in Berlin, we walked down the Unter den Linden (literally “under the lime trees”), a promenade where processions and marches have taken place throughout history. The Deutsches Historisches Museum ( German Historical Museum) was one of our stops on the street. Inside, there were exhibitions covering German history from 100BC to 1994 – from the Middle Ages to the re-unification of Germany. Thenewest exhibition was one of German art, named Cassandra. All of us were amazed at the preservation of historical artefacts, such as private letters and money-counting machines from the Reformation age. The paintings we saw throughout the museum astounded us with their vivid colours and precise detail.
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| 'Our fascinating guide at the Wannsee Conference Museum' |
The DDR Museum (Imogen Walker - Yr 11)
During the week, wevisited the DDR Museum whichprovides hands on experience of everyday life in the German Democratic Republic. This experience included an authentic Trabi car and a house which was laid out exactly like it would be during this era, boasting a genuine pressure cooker and wall units and even including food packets which would have been sold in East Germany. The museum, as well as providing a fun and interesting experience, offered highly relevant and educational informationconsolidating our current studiesand therefore was a thoroughly enjoyable experience.
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| 'Behind the wheel of a ‘Trabi’ at the DDR Museum' |
Checkpoint Charlie Museum (Alex Whitton - Yr 11)
Personally, one of the highest points of the trip was our visit to the Checkpoint Charlie Museum. It got mixed reviews from our party but I found it highly interesting, as everywhere you looked there were personal accounts of people’s experiences in a divided Berlin. Many of the items exhibited had been used by escapees to cross the city divide and there were photos and stories covering the walls.
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| 'The entrance to KZ Sachsenhausen' |
The Reichstag (Hannah Walker - Yr 11)
We also visited the Reichstag – the German Parliament building, an importantsite in Germany’s history. From its peak, historicalsites across the whole of Berlin can be seen. Unfortunately it was cloudy during our visit and so visibility was limited but simply seeing the building whichhas been involdedin so manyconsequential historical moments,brought to lifeall thefacts and figures that we had studied before.
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| 'Inside the impressive dome of the restored Reichstag building' |