New Urban Relics
februari 13, 2026
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The history of this former nursing home actually begins in 1936, when a barracks area was built west of the site in preparation for World War II. In 1940, it was converted into a training facility for medical personnel. Until the end of the war, the facility also served as a military hospital. 1,033 German soldiers and refugees who died here after the war are buried in the nearby cemetery. Originally, there were 38 barracks, some of which were destroyed after the war.
In 1948, a retirement home was established here in and around a vacant barracks, which was converted into a nursing home in 1953. From 1954 onwards, it was run as a "Pflegeheim Freundschaft" (Peace Secret Friendship) community where both young and old lived together. Several large buildings were constructed between 1956 and 1958. The nursing home housed no fewer than 1,200 elderly people and those in need of care. In 1990, some 600 people still lived there in extremely poor conditions. That same year, the then Prime Minister of the GDR, Lothar de Maizière, visited the nursing home to learn more about the grievances.
In 2003, the adjacent barracks were demolished to make way for a new senior care center, a daycare center, and a senior citizens' club of the German Red Cross. The former nursing home became vacant and quickly fell victim to decay and vandalism. Today, the complex is in a state of disrepair and overgrown with weeds. Nature is reclaiming its rights.
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