Ministry of Aviation: WWII Survivor

Aviation Ministry circa 1938

In an earlier post I discussed the Berlin Victory Column as a survivor of World War II, one of several structures that withstood the virtual destruction of Berlin. Another such structure to achieve this feat is the Ministry of Aviation building, the headquarters of the Luftwaffe.

The building was ordered due to the process of the separation of the German Luftwaffe from the German Army in 1933, immediately following the Nazi's rise to power (a similar process occurred in the United States when the US Army Air Corps became the independent US Air Force in 1947). The Ministry seized all of the patents to German aircraft of the time, including the tri-motor Ju-52 used by Lufthansa. It was the intention to help speed up the development of the aviation industry under one roof, however due to the eccentric and unpredictable personal leadership of Herman Goering, the aviation development only progressed in fits and stutters.

The building itself was one of only a small handful of buildings in Berlin to survive not only the bombing of the city but also the shelling of the city by the Soviets virtually unscathed. It also survived the post war policy of demolishing Nazi buildings, such as the SS headquarters located across the street, today memorialized as the Topography of Terror. For the Ministry of Aviation building, today it serves as the German Finance Ministry building. It remains virtually unchanged from the 1930s except for one detail: on the top of the columns of the fence there once sat bronze eagles holding swastikas. Now, of course, they have been removed.

German Finance Ministry as of 2011

From bottom to top: Topography of Terror, Berlin Wall, German Finance Ministry
(left corner of building as seen in left side of 1938 photo)

So one of these days, if you find yourself walking the streets of the formerly divided city, you can walk down Wilhelmstrasse and see the Topography of Terror, the foundations of SS headquarters, a remnant of the Berlin Wall, and the German Finance Ministry building, a perfect juxtaposition of past and present. Until next time, take care, thanks for reading, and have a happy Fourth of July!