Brandenburg-Görden Prison

File:Bundesarchiv Bild 102-11695, Brandenburg, Hauptgebäude des Zuchthauses.jpg

Brandenburg-Görden Prison (1931)

Brandenburg-Görden Prison is located on Aton-Saefkow-Allee in the Görden section of Brandenburg an der Havel. Erected between 1927 and 1935, it was built to be the most secure and modern prison in Europe. It was a Zuchthaus for inmates convicted of lengthy or life sentences at hard labor, also those sentenced to death, for. Both criminal and political prisoners were sent there, also people imprisoned for preventive detention or for interrogation. Prisoners of war were also sent there. Built with a capacity of 1800, it sometimes held over 4000.

History

By the end of the Nazi era, from 1933 - 1945, roughly 4,300 people had been imprisoned at Brandenburg-Görden. A total of 1,722 people, who were sentenced for political reasons, were executed there. 652 other political prisoners died from disease and seven committed suicide.

The old Brandenburg Prison, on Neudorfer Straße, was closed in 1931 because of its terrible hygenic condition, but later housed the Brandenburg concentration camp from August 1933 till February 1934. The prison later became the site of the Aktion T4 euthanasia program, where from February to October 1940, some 10,000 disabled, mentally retarded or mentally ill people were gassed.

Initially, there weren't many political prisoners at the new prison, but during the war years, it increased to about 60%. The prison was installed an execution chamber in 1940, using what had previously been a garage. They installed a guillotine and a gallows. The total number of executions was 2743 and took place between August 1, 1940 and April 20, 1945. The youngest victim was a 15-year old French boy. By the end of 1942, "preventive detention" prisoners, such as Jews, Roma, Sinti, Russians and Ukranians were sent to concentration camps.

The Red Army liberated the prison am April 27, 1945, finding around 3600 prisoners, including 180 awaiting execution. After the war, the Soviet Army imprisoned collaborators here until 1947, primarily members of the Russian Liberation Army.

Till 1989, the German Democratic Republic also used the correctional facility for political prisoners. Since 1975, there has been a memorial room at the prison, which is today part of a Justizvollzugsanstalt complex.

The present

Today, the prison is divided into three main sections, plus a social therapy wing and prison hospital. There is a jail for 88 adults, a medium security wing for 330 adult men and a minimum security wing for 100 adult men. In addition, there is a social therapy wing with 80 men and a prison hospital with 32 beds. There are another 36 beds in the transport wing for prisoners who are being moved from one location to another. The JVA Brandenburg is a men's prison and is supported by a total staff of 439, of which 145 are women.

Prisoners there have sentences from temporary detention to life, the most severe sentence in Germany. Life sentence does not, however, mean one is to spend the rest of one's life in prison, rather that it is for an undetermined, but long time with a minimum of 15 years. After 15 years, the sentence may be commuted.

The prison is in the midst of a renovation that will last until 2014. It will update the security and technical equipment to state of the art. The prison will remain operational during this time.

The street where the prison exists is now named for one of the people executed there, Anton Saefkow.

Notable prisoners

(Many of the people on this list are notable because they later became important in the German Democratic Republic. For more information on any of the people below, see the list on the German version of this page.)

• Ernst Albert Altenkirch, 1935?-1945?
• Bruno Baum, 1937-1945
• Dieter Borkowski, 1928-2000
• Hermann Brill, 1939-1943
• Otto Buchwitz, 1941-1945
• Ernst Busch (actor), 1943-1945
• Karl Wilhelm Fricke, 1956-1959
• Michael Gartenschläger, 1961-1971
• Robert Havemann, 1943-1945
• Walter Hochmuth, 1942?-1945
• Walter Hösterey Hammer, 1942-1945
• Erich Honecker, 1937-1945
• Wilhelm Kling, 1937-1945
• Erich Kürschner (resistance fighter), 1938-1945
• Fritz Lange, 1943-1945
• Alfred Lemmnitz, 1941-1945
• Bruno Max Leuschner, 1936-1940
• Hans Litten, 1934
• Alfred Neumann, 1942-1945
• Ernst Niekisch, 1939-1945
• Herbert Sandberg, 1934
• Ernst Sasse, 1942-1945
• Hermann Schlimme, 1938-1940
• Alexander Schwab, from 1937
• Kurt Seibt, 1941-1945
• Harry Seidel, 1963–1966
• Frank Schmökel, -1993
• Wolfgang Welsch, 1966

Executed or died at Brandenburg-Görden Prison

File:Stamps of Germany (DDR) 1964, MiNr 1016.jpg

Bernhard Bästlein, executed at Brandenburg-Görden

• Bernhard Almstadt, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on November 6, 1944
• Walter Arndt, zoologist, executed on June 26, 1944
• Friedrich Aue, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on November 27, 1944
• Bernhard Bästlein, Communist and co-founder of Saefkow-Jacob-Bästlein Organization, executed on September 18, 1944
• Bruno Binnebesel, Catholic Priest and Resistance fighter, executed on November 13, 1944
• Max Borrack, Resistance fighter, executed on February 19, 1945
• Walter Budeus, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on August 21, 1944
• Hermann Danz, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on February 5, 1945
• Leo Drabent, Communist and resistance fighter, executed on November 20, 1944
• Friedrich Fromm, Officer of the Reichswehr and the Wehrmacht, executed on March 12, 1945

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Franz Jacob, executed at Brandenburg-Görden

• Claudius Gosau, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on March 6, 1944
• Georg Groscurth, doctor, co-founder of European Union (resistance group), executed on May 8, 1944
• Nikolaus Christoph von Halem jurist, businessman and Resistance fighter, executed on October 9, 1944
• Michael Hirschberg, SPD Resistance fighter, died from heart attack from injuries after arrest, March 20, 1937
• Cäsar Horn, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on March 19, 1945
• Franz Jacob, Communist and co-founder of Saefkow-Jacob-Bästlein Organization and Bästlein-Jacob-Abshagen Group, executed 1944
• Franz Jägerstätter, Catholic conscientious objector, executed on August 9, 1943
• Erich Knauf, author, executed on May 2, 1944
• Wilhelm Knöchel, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on July 24, 1944
• Alfred Kowalke, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on March 6, 1944
• Arthur Ladwig, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on July 10, 1944
• Georg Lehnig, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on March 28, 1945
• Karl Lühr, mayor of Woltersdorf (Wendland, Niedersachsen), executed on December 20, 1943
• Rudolf Mandrella, executed on September 3, 1943
• Franz Mett, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on August 21, 1944
• Max Josef Metzger, Catholic priest, executed on April 17, 1944

File:Stamps of Germany (DDR) 1964, MiNr 1014.jpg

Anton Saefkow, executed at Brandenburg-Görden

• Joseph Müller, Catholic priest, executed on September 11, 1944
• Kurt Müller, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on June 26, 1944
• Theodor Neubauer, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on February 5, 1945
• Hans Neumann (resistance fighter), Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on November 20, 1944
• Erwin Nöldner, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on November 6, 1944
• Stanislaus Peplinski, Polish forced laborer from Waldsee and member of Speyer-Kameradschaft, excuted on March 19, 1945
• Siegfried Rädel, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on May 10, 1943
• Franz Reinisch, Catholic priest, executed on August 21, 1942
• Paul Rentsch, dentist, member of the European Union (resistance group), beheaded on May 8, 1944
• Fritz Riedel, Resistance fighter, executed on August 21, 1944
• Kurt Ritter (Resistance fighter), Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on August 28, 1944
• Friedrich Rödel, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on February 5, 1945
• Beppo Römer, Resistance fighter, executed on September 25, 1944
• Axel Rudolph, author of adventure and crime stories, guillotined on October 30, 1944
• Jakob Schultheis, Social Democrat and member of Speyer-Kameradschaft, executed on March 19, 1945
• Anton Saefkow, Communist and co-founder of Saefkow-Jacob-Bästlein Organization, executed on September 18, 1944
• Willi Sänger, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on November 27, 1944
• Johann Schellheimer, Communist and Resistance fighter, on February 5, 1945

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Werner Seelenbinder, executed at Brandenburg-Görden

• Otto Schmirgal, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on December 15, 1944
• Martin Schwantes, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on February 5, 1945
• Bernhard Schwentner, Catholic priest, executed on October 30, 1944
• Werner Seelenbinder, athlete and Communist, executed on October 24, 1944
• Max Sievers, Freidenker, executed on January 17, 1944
• Arthur Sodtke, worker, athlete and Communist, executed on August 14, 1944
• Robert Uhrig, Communist and Resistance fighter, died on August 21, 1944
• Franz Virnich, jurist and Catholic Verbindungsstudent (CV), died on April 5, 1943
• Ernst Volkmann, Catholic conscientious objector, executed on August 9, 1941
• Alfons Maria Wachsmann, Catholic theologian, executed on February 21, 1944
• Arthur Weisbrodt, Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on November 6, 1944
• Martin Weise (resistance fighter), Communist and Resistance fighter, executed on November 15, 1943
• Hans Wölfel, jurist und Catholic Resistance fighter, executed on July 3, 1944
• Johannes Wüsten, author and Communist, died on April 26, 1943
• Johannes Zoschke, metal worker, sailor, sports enthusiast and antifascist Resistance fighter, executed on October 26, 1944

See also

• Nazi elimination of political opponents
• Capital punishment
• Zentrale Hinrichtungsstätte (German)
• NS-Tötungsanstalt Brandenburg (German)

External links

• Brandenburg Prison Museum and Documentation Centre Blog post, with photos of prison. Retrieved March 24, 2010
• "Zuchthaus Brandenburg - Görden in Brandenburg an der Havel" Landtag Brandenburg. Official website of the German State of Brandenburg. Retrieved March 17, 2010 (German)

de:Zuchthaus Brandenburg fr:Prison de Brandenbourg