Activity
Visiting programme in Mödlareuth – “Little Berlin”

As part of the visiting programme “Peace and Exchange in Europe and Northeast Asia – remembering, reconciliation, exchanges”, a delegation visited different cities and sights in Belgium, Germany, the Czech Republic, and Poland. The goal of the trip is to promote the dialogue of reconciliation and peace in Europe and Northeast Asia. The duration of the visiting programme was from the 26th of May till the 1st of June.

Mödlareuth is often described as the “German town divided by war” or “Little Berlin”. A town partially in the province Bavaria and partly in Thuringia, divided by a Wall from 1949 to 1990. Right through this village ran the wall but there was no checkpoint, which made crossing to the other side of the village impossible. The division of the town first started in the early 1800s when outsiders came and declared one side of the town Bavarian and the other Thuringian, divided by a river. This border did, however, not affect the populations’ daily life. The two sides were able to interact with each other without any problems. This situation changed after World War Two after the lines of demarcation were decided to be this river as well. The East would from then on belong to the Soviet Union and the West to the USA. After 1949 and the establishment of West and East Germany, this town was split in half. Not only divided by a river but a fence, which people were unable to cross. People in Mödlareuth in East Germany were forced to move, had a curfew, and had to follow strict rules.

In 1989 after the revolution and the opening of East Germany, people from East Mödlareuth were allowed to go to West Mödlareuth but due to the absence of a checkpoint, it was difficult for them to cross over. More than a month after the official fall of the Berlin Wall the wall in Mödlareuth was opened and after 37 years the two parts of one town were reunited. Today, the whole village is a museum, reminding us of the history and showing the differences that last till today. The museum aims to present the history of the division of Germany in its entirety. Not just the wall and barbed wire, but also the connection to its society, economy, and politics.