Black Market Archives - Walled In Berlin

Posts Tagged ‘Black Market’

Alexanderplatz-Most Visited Locale in Berlin

Monday, March 20th, 2023

Not only is Alexanderplatz Berlin’s biggest public square, but it is also the biggest public square in any German city. Named after Tsar Alexander I, who visited Berlin in 1805, the “Alex” is located in the district of Mitte, Berlin’s center. It is a busy pedestrian zone as well as an important transportation junction. S-Bahn (elevated train), U-Bahn (underground train), buses, trams, and regional trains, all stop at the Alexanderplatz. And if you are a movie buff, it has also been a popular film location with scenes from the recent movie Babylon being shot here.

Alexanderplatz – Post World War II History

In April of 1945, near the end of World War II, the Red Army largely destroyed the plaza during the Battle of Berlin. A thriving black market popped up in the ruins. Police raided Alexanderplatz several times a day, but activities continued. No major redevelopment took place until the 1960s. At that time, still under East German control, the large plaza was turned into a pedestrian zone, and several department stores were constructed along its flanks. In additionk the plaza served as a venue for large celebrations such as the 25^th anniversary of East Germany. Later, during the Peaceful Revolution of 1989, the Alex saw the largest demonstration in the history of East Germany. The protests continued and culminated in the Fall of the Berlin Wall.

World clock – Weltzeituhr at the Alex

In 1969, the same year the Fernsehturm (television tower) was built, a sixteen-ton world clock was constructed in the plaza. By reading the markings on its metal rotunda, the time in 148 major cities around the world can be determined. Over time, the world clock has become a popular meeting place and has been declared a historically and culturally significant monument.

World Clock at Berlin’s Alexanderplatz, photo © J. Elke Ertle, www.walled-in-Berlin.com

Attractions near the Alexanderplatz

Many tourist attractions are within walking distance of the Alexanderplatz: The Fernsehturm, the Brunnen der Völkerfreundschaft (Fountain of International Friendship), the Nikolai Quarter, and the Rotes Rathaus (Red City Hall). Shoppers have the opportunity to shop at department stores surrounding the plaza. Every December, several popular Christmas markets set up their booths at the Alex.

For a sneak peek at the first 20+ pages of my memoir, Walled-In: A West Berlin Girl’s Journey to Freedom, click “Download a free excerpt” on my home page and feel free to follow my blog about anything German: historic or current events, people, places or food.

Walled-In is my story of growing up in Berlin during the Cold War. Juxtaposing the events that engulfed Berlin during the Berlin Blockade, the Berlin Airlift, the Berlin Wall, and Kennedy’s Berlin visit with the struggle against my equally insurmountable parental walls, Walled-In is about freedom vs. conformity, conflict vs. harmony, domination vs. submission, loyalty vs. betrayal.

Tags: Alex, Alexanderplatz, Battle of Berlin, Black Market, Christmas markets in Berlin, fall of the Berlin Wall, Fernsehturm, Rotes Rathaus, Weltzeituhr, World clock
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Black Market Cigarette Bonanza in Berlin

Monday, February 20th, 2023

Immediately following WWII, a Black Market cigarette bonanza started in Berlin, Germany. Cigarettes became the unofficial currency. Even cigarette butts had value. There were three reasons for this phenomenon:

Berliners and the Black Market Cigarette Bonanza

Following WWII, the four victorious powers, the United States, Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union occupied Berlin. Housing, medicines, and heating materials were in short supply. Food was rationed. The population’s bank savings had been confiscated in the first few months after the war. The occupation currency had become nearly worthless, and there was hardly any cash in circulation. Berliners depended heavily on barter for their necessities, as long as one still had, or could acquire, something to exchange. Along with bartering, almost anything could be bought on the black market for a price despite shortages. Cigarettes became the unofficial currency.

U.S. Servicemen and the Black Market Cigarette Bonanza

The black market flourished when the American troops arrived in Berlin in July 1945. Two large black markets opened in the Tiergarten and the Alexanderplatz. Both locations were located in the British Sector, where I grew up. Although chocolate, liquor, and small food items were also traded, cigarettes became the commodity of choice. There was a good reason for that.

Profitability of Cigarettes on the Black Market

Unlike their Soviet counterparts, U.S. servicemen were allowed to convert their pay into American dollars at the official rate of ten to one. They were free to send that money home, but they could do far better by first participating in the Black Market. It worked like this: After purchasing a carton of American cigarettes for fifty cents at the PX, U.S. servicemen could sell them on the black market at the going rate of 1,500 German Occupation Marks. After exchanging the occupation currency into US dollars at the official rate of 10:1, they were able to pocket $150. Servicemen caught on quickly, and soon half of all business transactions in Berlin took place on the black market. The black market was so lucrative that soldiers sent thousands of dollars home, most of it derived from these illegal earnings. In July 1945, the U.S. army’s finance office in Berlin disbursed one million dollars in pay; soldiers sent home some three million dollars. (Walter Rundell, Jr., Black Market Money: The Collapse of U.S. Military Currency Control in World War II (1964), pp. 46–47.)

Black Market Cigarette Bonanza immediately following WWII in Berlin, Germany. www.walled-in-berlin.com

Walled-In is my story of growing up in Berlin during the Cold War. Juxtaposing the events that engulfed Berlin during the Berlin Blockade, the Berlin Airlift, the Berlin Wall and Kennedy’s Berlin visit with the struggle against my equally insurmountable parental walls, Walled-In is about freedom vs. conformity, conflict vs. harmony, domination vs. submission, loyalty vs. betrayal.

Tags: Black Market, cigarettes as a currency, cigarettes on the Black Market, German occupation currency, profitability of cigarettes on the Black Market, WWII
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Potsdamer Platz – Part 2

Monday, November 4th, 2013

Potsdamer Platz following World War II

Following World War II, Berlin was divided into four sectors. Three of them–the American, British and Soviet occupation sectors–converged at the Potsdamer Platz. That geographic oddity resulted in the Potsdamer Platz becoming a center for black market activities. Since black market trading was illegal, the convergence of three sectors meant that one had to walk only a few feet to cross sector boundaries and could conduct black market activities before drawing much attention.

Potsdamer Platz in October 1945

Potsdamer Platz following construction of the Berlin Wall

In August 1961, the Berlin Wall went up. It divided the bustling Potsdamer Platz into two halves. What had been a busy intersection became a desolate wasteland. Since the S-Bahn (elevated train) traveled briefly through East Berlin on its route from one part of West Berlin to another, the Potsdamer Platz station, located in the eastern sector, was closed off and patrolled by armed guards. Trains ran through the station without shopping. The corresponding U-Bahn (subway) route was closed entirely. After the remaining bomb-damaged buildings on both sides of the Wall were cleared away, only two structures remained standing: Weinhaus Huth and the Hotel Esplanade.

Weinhaus Huth at the Potsdamer Platz

The wine merchant Christian Huth acquired the land in 1877, built his villa and started a wine business. His grandson Willy Huth erected the current building on the same spot thirty-five years later. Weinhaus Huth survived World War II virtually undamaged and became known as “the last house on the Potsdamer Platz.” The reason it survived was its steel construction. The ultra-modern construction method was chosen so that the heavy wine bottles could be stored on the building’s second and third floors.

For forty-five years, Weinhaus Huth stood alone at the Potsdamer Platz, next to the remains of the Hotel Esplanade. Both were in the British sector close to the Berlin Wall. Following the death of Willy Huth in 1967, his widow sold the land and buildings to the City of Berlin.

Hotel Esplanade at the Potsdamer Platz

Hotel Esplanade went from being one of Berlin’s most luxurious hotels to a bombed-out shell that stood alongside the Berlin Wall at the Potsdamer Platz. Built in 1907, it included the famous Kaisersaal (emperor’s hall) where Emperor Wilhelm II hosted exclusive Herrenabende (men’s evenings). In the “Golden Twenties”, the Esplanade held popular afternoon dances. Well-known movie stars like Charlie Chaplin and Greta Garbo visited here.

In the last years of World War II, bombs destroyed ninety percent of the famous hotel. Only the Kaisersaal, the breakfast hall, the stairwell, and the washrooms survived. After the war they were restored, and the Esplanade became a popular nightclub. During the 1950s, it hosted elaborate balls, and scenes of the movie, Cabaret, were filmed here. My father, a professional photographer, photographed many of the events at the hotel.

Also visit www.walled-in-berlin.com/j-elke-ertle/potsdamer-platz-part-1/ to read about the history of the Potsdamer Platz prior to World War II.

Tags: Black Market, German reunification, Hotel Esplanade, Kaisersaal, Potsdamer Platz, Weinhaus Huth, World War II
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