Taylorian

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TAYLORIAN 2024

History Trip to Berlin

O ur trip to Berlin in the October half-term began with an excursion to the Stasi Prison at the Berlin-Hohenschönhausen Memorial. The prison was established by the East German Ministry of State Security in 1951 as a central remand prison to hold anyone considered to be in opposition to the communist dictatorship. The physical and psychological torture methods used on citizens were truly awful, and I found it sobering to reflect that the 6tasi only really ceased operating in 1990. The second day started with a three hour walking tour of Berlin, during which we visited the site of the Gestapo headquarters and learnt about the crimes committed by the SS, the Gestapo and the Reich Security group. The Berlin Wall Memorial was a fascinating outdoor exhibition, situated on the former border strip on the East Berlin side of the wall, which helped to bring home the reality of life in a divided city.

The most memorable part of the trip for me was the visit to the Sachsenhausen Memorial and Museum, which was the site of the first concentration camp in Prussia. Between 1936 and 1945, 200,000 people were detained within the camp, including Jews and Romani, as well as political opponents of the Nazis and foreign prisoners of war. Tens of thousands of internees died of hunger or disease, or were murdered. The final day of our trip concluded with a guided tour of the Olympiastadion (now an iconic football arena), a visit to the Palace of Tears (the Cold War Museum), and sightseeing at the Kurfurstendamm. I would like to thank Mr Hale for his meticulous and thoughtful planning, as well as Mr Evans, Mr Hoyle and Dr Hesketh for making the trip run so smoothly. Oscar Williams (L6th)

Reflections on Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp A solemn and despondent feeling lingered in the air. We first went to the roll call area where prisoners would line up to be counted; seeing the gun stationed at the top of the main building evoked the constant fear that prisoners must have felt. We moved on to the lodgings where we saw a fully preserved sleeping area and a small museum displaying the striped uniforms that prisoners had to wear. There was also a case showing the remains of the prisoners’ leather boots, which was especially impactful as we imagined the people who may have once walked in them. We also had the opportunity to see the remains of the gas chambers, the shock of which is indescribable. On our way back to the hotel, we were all in deep reflection about our experience at the camp. Jai Elangovan (5ths)