Border Stories in Thüringen und Hessen | From Eschwege to Eisenach | The Former Inner German Border

Where are the places that recall Germany’s division? DW-presenter Nicole Fröhlich travels to Hessen and Thüringen to search for clues. Her travels take her to her hometown of Eschwege via the Point Alpha Memorial and then Wartburg.
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[@carstenwichert5351]

My father successfully escaped from Vacha to Phillipsthal, in 1966 at the age of 21. Your report made me goosebumps while whatching it.

[@TheYizuman]

Love seeing stories about this topic. Would love to see more GDR/DDR stories in the future.

[@williamharris9525]

Absolutely amazing! This production was an amazing job, and very well received! This brings back some wonderful memories of when I was stationed in Germany during my second tour and bad Hersfeld. I would take trips up to Philipsthal and Eisensch to see the old border fortifications. I myself served on the border a few years earlier in the town of Weiden on the Czechoslovak border.

[@roesi1985]

You could have included some information on how life in the GDR worked if you lived near the border. There were different zones and you needed special permits to enter these zones, for example. Some zones were only allowed for residents and you couldn't bring guests, if I remember correctly. But on the other hand, if you were living near the border, you had the best reception of "Westfernsehen" (TV stations from Western Germany)!

[@sped17373]

This awesome! My grandparents lived in Eschwege, and one of my aunts had an apt. on Dr. Gebhardtstrasse across the street from that church with a little playground where I played as a child. My mother is from Kassel and I was born in Frankershausen in 1957. Also have an uncle living in Wanfried and cousins in Giessen. Last time I was there was my honeymoon in 1990.

[@DWTravel]

Maybe you should come again? 😀

[@neilwalsh4058]

Wartburg is more famous in UK as the name of budget cars imported between 1960's and 1980's. The cars badge has the castle on it

[@DWTravel]

Do you mean the one made in GDR?

[@neilwalsh4058]

@@DWTravel Yes made at the factory in Eisenach I believe. They were a 2 stroke so used to see them running around with a wisp of blue exhaust smoke behind them. I heard they had a nice piece of technology for the day and age, a freewheeling hub style gearbox , when you let off the power , the gearbox disconnected from the driven wheels and helped keep your motion. Would love to have owned one

[@Ellipirelli69]

​@@neilwalsh4058technology wise very well explained. My father was an engineer developing that gear box and holding a patent on it. He is now over 90 years old.

[@roesi1985]

@@neilwalsh4058 The Trabbi also had a freewheeling gearbox, btw! Yes, the Wartburg car was made in Eisenach, at the former BMW factory. My granddad used to work there. The Wartburg car was one of the fancier cars of the GDR: it was more expensive and you had to wait longer to get one. If you drove a Wartburg, people knew that you either were rich or had connections to important people or were someone important yourself.

[@mathisnotforthefaintofheart]

She speaks English without a German accent! Very cool!

[@brucedanton3669]

Thank you-so nice really of course!!

[@mcmbegbu]

Germany is a beautiful country (A German woman almost convinced my parents to allow her adopt me). I enjoy DW Travel videos, you see the world with DW Travel. Thanks Nicole!

[@paulhoskin5353]

Germany is a fantastic country. Great video too. Thanks Nicole.

[@petermitchelmore2592]

Given how the long land border between both German states used land mines whereas the Berlin Wall largely didn’t, there must have been more who became amputees there than in Berlin.

[@ms64ful]

Eschwege my Hometown ....

[@douglasschaden3475]

Why was Germany even divided in the first place? 9:08 Oh yeah.

[@familyandfriends3519]

Your people for starting ww2 and murdering millions of people in the Holocaust