Introduction

The Second World War shaped the post-War history of Europe in both East and West and left a far-reaching legacy that has not always been acknowledged. 1945 may represent some kind of ‘stunde nul’, or zero hour, for modern Europe, but the events of the war made the development of post-war Europe extremely complicated. 

The over-riding necessity of avoiding a return to the past led to changes within the continent that were not always well executed. Whilst the new order meant development of the welfare state and a co-operative, largely peaceful Europe, in the West this was anxious and insecure and in the East secured by force. If the First World War destroyed ‘old Europe’, the Second World War created the conditions for a new Europe, and one that is still only just emerging. Only now is post-war Europe coming to an end with Germany, and the rest of the continent, more conscious of its twentieth century history than at any time in the past 60 years.

Themes of the Trips

The overseas trips, to Germany, the Czech Republic and Hungary, provide a unique opportunity for teachers, museum educators and other education professionals to examine the legacy of the Second World War, and to reconcile this legacy with the events of the Cold War from 1945.

By visiting sites in both west and east Europe, and by experiencing the way in which both sides of the Iron Curtain have chosen to memorialise and tell the story of the Second World War and the events of the Cold War, the differences and problems with this period of history emerge. The group will explore questions of collective memory and remembrance looking specifically at the Holocaust, war crimes and crimes against humanity, as well as the post-war settlement, the division of Germany and Communist takeover in Eastern Europe. National identity and global citizenship will be addressed by looking at key events in the Cold War and the impact of the Cold War on European history, society and human rights. The aim of the immersive learning programme is to make links between the legacy of the Second World War and it’s effect on the Cold War using real experiences as inspiration. The group will meet with museum directors, historians and educators both in the UK and in Europe. There will also be the opportunity to meet eyewitnesses to the events studied in order to gain a real insight into the experience of living through the Cold War.

What you’ll see

During the trips to Germany, the Czech Republic and Hungary, we hope to incorporate visits to the following sites:

Berlin Memorials

There are many memorials in Berlin, some very recent and others not so. The building of memorials such as the Holocaust Memorial, the Soviet War Memorial and Hall of Memory, the memorial to the Nazi Book Burnings and the Stumbling Stone memorials to Holocaust victims have played a very important role in acknowledging the memory of events in history for the people of Germany. By viewing the variety of memorials we can start to understand how Germany is beginning to be reconciled with its past.

Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp

Sited just outside Berlin in the small town of Oranienburg, Sachsenhausen is a key site for both of the periods of history covered in the programme. It demonstrates clearly the layers that exist within many sites in Europe and the links between the legacy of the Second World War and events after 1945. Sachsenhausen was one of the main Nazi internment camps, used as a prototype for others. It was not designed specifically for extermination but was used for these purposes at the end of the war when thousands of Soviet POWs and Jewish prisoners on death marches were killed there. After the war, the Soviets continued to use the infrastructure for similar purposes. 

Wannsee Haus

The Wannsee Conference marked the beginning of the terrible climax of Hitler’s anti-Jewish policies and The Final Solution to the Jewish Question. It was at this lakeside house in 1942 that Heydrich summoned leading Nazis to formalise the fate of the Jewish people in Europe. The Haus today is a museum of the Holocaust and uses many photographs and accounts to tell the story. The room where the conference took place has been kept as it was with documents from the meeting on the table and photographs and biographies of the participants around the walls.

Stasi Headquarters

The East German secret police, the Staatssicherheitsdienst (Ministry for State Security) or Stasi kept a tight watch on the people of the GDR. Files were kept on millions of innocent citizens and operations were launched frequently against dissidents, whether real or imagined. In 1989 groups of civil rights demonstrators began to occupy Stasi offices in various districts of East Germany, forming Citizen’s Committees. In January 1990, representatives from these Committees took over the Stasi Headquarters, on Normannenstrasse in Berlin. The newly elected government of the GDR passed a resolution to form a research and memorial facility at the main headquarters building. This was never put into practice because former ministers would have been given the responsibility of sorting through their own documents before handing them over. The Research Centre and Memorial Site was opened in January 1990 by the Association Anti-Stalinist Action Normannenstrasse (ASTAK), which was formed by the Citizens’ Committee and civil rights activists.

Hohenschonhausen Stasi Prison

Hohenschonhausen was a Soviet internment camp at the end of the Second World War and the site was then the main Soviet remand prison for Germany. In the early 1950s it was taken over by the Stasi and from then until 1990 was used as their main prison. The site is another example of the layered history of many sites in Germany and allows further understanding of the wide ranging influence of the Stasi in the lives of the people of East Germany.

Leipzig Forum of Contemporary History

This museum, opened in 1999, provides a good insight into the history of dictatorship, resistance and opposition in East Germany. It contains displays on the culture and everyday life of the GDR, the relationship between east and west and the difficulties of the reunification period since 1989/90.

Party Rally Grounds, Nuremberg

The site of Hitler’s infamous Nuremberg Rallies has a Documentation Centre built into the huge and unfinished Congress Hall. The exhibition, titled Fascination and Terror, documents the political, social and architectural history of the Nazi Party and the rally grounds themselves present a living history site of incomparable impact. They also enable the visitor to understand the other side of the Nazi party, the side that was enjoyed by many German citizens between 1935 and 1939.

Lidice

The village of Lidice, now in the Czech Republic, was the victim of Nazi revenge for the assassination of Reinhardt Heydrich, the Protector of Bohemia and Moravia, by two parachutists of the Czechoslovak Army in May 1942. 173 men living in Lidice were shot and the women and children sent to Ravensbruck concentration camp. Once the people had been disposed of, the Nazis then set about destroying the village, setting the houses on fire, razing the remains with plastic explosives. 340 Lidice citizens were murdered by the Nazis, 143 women returned to the village after the war, along with 17 surviving children. A new village was built for those remaining. As well as providing a chilling reminder of what the Nazi regime was capable of, Lidice also encourages discussion around issues of remembrance and memorialisation.

House of Terror, Budapest

This museum, opened in Budapest in 2002, provides an interesting and sometimes controversial look at both the Nazi and Soviet occupations in Hungary housed in the former head quarters of the Communist secret police, the AVO. Victims of the AVO and prior to 1945, the Arrow Cross were tortured in the basement. The museum is a cross between museum and memorial based mainly on archive photographs and film footage with carefully placed objects and replicas to augment the displays.

Holocaust Memorial Centre, Budapest

Built around the Pava Synagogue, the Holocaust Memorial Centre is a modern exhibition centre which seeks to tell the story of the Jewish and Roman victims of the Holocaust in Hungary as well as running an extensive education programme for students and teachers.  It aims to incorporate the topic of the Holocaust and related social issues into the Hungarian education system and to educate young people about the loss of the Jewish population and what it has meant for Hungarian society.

Emlekpont, Hodmesovarsahely, Hungary

Emlekpont, or Point of Remembrance, is a museum in the small town of Hodmesovarsahely, about 2 hours south of Budapest. It was created by the same team as the House of Terror and aims to tell the story of an ordinary town in Hungary between 1945 and 1990 through the photos, documents and personal testimony of its residents. Answers to questions such as how did the regime within Hungary affect ordinary people are contained within the displays, which also highlight the damage that can be done to civilisation by a lack of freedom.

To read what participants in the 2008 programme had to say about their experiences, click here.