Schülerberg Kaserne
Kaserne Pioneer Batt. v Rauch. I. Brdbg. Nr. 3
If I'm not mistaken, I think it is also known as: Spandau Alexander Barracks
Spandau Schülerberg kaserne
Schülerberg Kaserne
Kaserne Pioneer Batt. v Rauch. I. Brdbg. Nr. 3
If I'm not mistaken, I think it is also known as: Spandau Alexander Barracks
Spandau Schülerberg kaserne
Train Kaserne
I must admit that this is the one that gives me the most doubts....
Related to that, I found this other military building in the city
Kaserne des Scheinwerfer Abteilung des Pionier Batls. v. Rauch (Brandebg. No. 5)
Scheinwerfer Abteilung
Neue Kaserne
Kaserne 5 Garde Regt. zu Fuss.
Neue Kaserne Garde Gren Regt. Nº 5
Neue Kaserne Garde Gren Regt. Nº 5
Kaserne Garde-Fuss. Art. Regiment in 1913
Bahnhof Kaserne (Stresow Kaserne)
Stresow Kaserne
Kaserne Garde Grenadier Regt. Nº 5
Kaserne Garde Grenadier Regt. Nº 5 in 2013
Stresow Kaserne
The Spandau Citadel
The Spandau Citadel
The Spandau Citadel is considered one of the most important and best-preserved Renaissance fortresses in Europe. It stands on an area that was already fortified with a stone castle in the Middle Ages. With the development of firearms, Spandau Castle no longer offered any protection. Between 1560 and 1594, Elector Joachim II of Brandenburg had a modern defensive structure built as western protection for the residential city of Berlin-Cölln.
The yellow arrow points to the citadel of Spandau
The specially hired Italian architects Francesco Chiaramella de Gandino and Rochus zu Lynar designed a symmetrical complex with four bastions completely surrounded by water. The walls and the battlements below were designed and equipped in such a way that attackers could be discovered and fired upon from anywhere...
The medieval Spandau Castle was built in the 12th century. Its first written mention dates back to 1197 and identifies it as a building of the Margraves of Brandenburg of the Ascanian family. The area at the confluence of Havel and Spree had strategic importance and was already protected by a wood and earth fortification as early as the 11th century.
The citadel built on these ancient layers was also conceived as a refuge for the princes who lived in Berlin. It suffered a siege and serious damage during the liberation wars against Napoleon in the spring of 1813.
Juliusturm is the oldest building in the entire Berlin area
From 1874 to 1919, the Reich war treasure was stored in the Juliusturm. During the Nazi era, combat gas laboratories were located in the citadel.
Tor Haus / Kommanadanten Haus
The gatehouse from the early period of fortress construction was remodeled in the 17th century and decorated with the coat of arms of the rulers of Brandenburg-Prussia. The restoration of the coat of arms, completed in the spring of 2021, shows what it looked like in 18th century when the royal crown replaced the electoral one.
The rooms above the gate served as the commander’s quarters since the Napoleonic Wars. Even before that, the embrasures had been converted into windows and partition walls had been built in. In the spring of 1945, the Volkssturm entrenched themselves in the rooms that had been used as officers’ apartments until then and blocked the gate hall with field stones and rubble up to the ceiling.
After the end of the Second World War, the British army took over the Spandau district and with it the citadel of the Soviet occupation. In 1948, the British military administration handed over the fortress to the German authorities
End of war in Sapandau
To know this story we are going to follow the war diary of a young German officer...
On the right side under point three it says "Defence Spandau Citadel"
Josef Brettschneider, from Düsseldorf, was recruited by the Wehrmacht in April 1943, when he was only 19 years old, while studying to be a teacher. As a lieutenant, he was an instructor of a Volkssturm battalion from February 1945.
The yellow dot, just below the letter "D" of the word SPANDAU on the map indicates the exact location of the citadel, where this story took place.
When the Red Army reached Berlin in April 1945, Brettschneider and his troops withdrew to the protection of the Spandau Citadel. The 16th century fortress in Havel was intended, with its thick brick walls, to at least protect the Volkssturm troops from the worst of Soviet attacks......
Extract from the diary of Lieutenant Josef Brettschneider
April 21, 1945. The Russians are here!
We, around 100 Volkssturm men and a few soldiers, are not prepared for what is coming.
As we all know and it is often said, the members of the Volkssturm were either too old or too short....
In recent weeks we have been frantically digging trenches in and around Spandau and camouflaging positions. To stop the enemy tanks, I had trees cut down from the nearby forest. Apartment blocks and basements were inspected as possible containment positions.
Since this part of Berlin had only suffered a few bombing raids so far, the mood among the men of the Volkssturm ranged between stoic composure and unwavering optimism. Only occasionally do some of them disappear overnight....
During the day we have to move and find a place to receive the Russians in Tegel Castle. Equipped only with infantry weapons, some machine guns and grenade launchers, we occupied previously dug trenches on a hill at the edge of the forest.....
Current image of Schloss Tegel
We have little hope of being able to effectively stop the enemy. Despair and worry begin to take over the men....
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