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Evening all,
Thought its time to post another report. This set of photos is nowhere near complete but thought I'd report on some of the photos that I've processed so far.
For those in the know and have also visited, this is a place filled with history including the hospital where a young 17 year old Adolf Hitler was treated in October and November 1916 after he was shot following a leg injury during the Battle of the Somme.
Beelitz-Heilstätten, a district of the town, is home to a large hospital complex of about 60 buildings including a cogeneration plant erected from 1898 on according to plans of architect Heino Schmieden. Originally designed as a sanatorium by the Berlin workers' health insurance corporation, the complex from the beginning of World War I on was a military hospital of the Imperial German Army. In 1945, Beelitz-Heilstätten was occupied by Red Army forces, and the complex remained a Soviet military hospital until 1995, well after the German reunification. In December 1990 Erich Honecker was admitted to Beelitz-Heilstätten after being forced to resign as the head of the East German government.
Following the Soviet withdrawal, attempts were made to privatize the complex, but they were not entirely successful. Some sections of the hospital remain in operation as a neurological rehabilitation center and as a center for research and care for victims of Parkinsons disease. The remainder of the complex, including the surgery, the psychiatric ward, and a rifle range, was abandoned in 2000. As of 2007, none of the abandoned hospital buildings or the surrounding area were secured, giving the area the feel of a ghost town. This has made Beelitz-Heilstätten a destination for curious visitors and a film set for movies like The Pianist in 2002, the Rammstein music video Mein Herz brennt and Valkyrie in 2008.
We had a bit of drama getting around the buildings due to the size of the place and some of the older buildings had been redeveloped, the maps thankfully served us well but we did run into the Police. Thankfully, we went and hid for half hour while they did their checks and had no further drama.
On with some photos. The rest will be on Flickr in due course.
Normally I wouldn't drive hundreds of miles for an empty building but this was kind of special and was one that was on the list for a long time.
Thanks for looking in.
Thought its time to post another report. This set of photos is nowhere near complete but thought I'd report on some of the photos that I've processed so far.
For those in the know and have also visited, this is a place filled with history including the hospital where a young 17 year old Adolf Hitler was treated in October and November 1916 after he was shot following a leg injury during the Battle of the Somme.
Beelitz-Heilstätten, a district of the town, is home to a large hospital complex of about 60 buildings including a cogeneration plant erected from 1898 on according to plans of architect Heino Schmieden. Originally designed as a sanatorium by the Berlin workers' health insurance corporation, the complex from the beginning of World War I on was a military hospital of the Imperial German Army. In 1945, Beelitz-Heilstätten was occupied by Red Army forces, and the complex remained a Soviet military hospital until 1995, well after the German reunification. In December 1990 Erich Honecker was admitted to Beelitz-Heilstätten after being forced to resign as the head of the East German government.
Following the Soviet withdrawal, attempts were made to privatize the complex, but they were not entirely successful. Some sections of the hospital remain in operation as a neurological rehabilitation center and as a center for research and care for victims of Parkinsons disease. The remainder of the complex, including the surgery, the psychiatric ward, and a rifle range, was abandoned in 2000. As of 2007, none of the abandoned hospital buildings or the surrounding area were secured, giving the area the feel of a ghost town. This has made Beelitz-Heilstätten a destination for curious visitors and a film set for movies like The Pianist in 2002, the Rammstein music video Mein Herz brennt and Valkyrie in 2008.
We had a bit of drama getting around the buildings due to the size of the place and some of the older buildings had been redeveloped, the maps thankfully served us well but we did run into the Police. Thankfully, we went and hid for half hour while they did their checks and had no further drama.
On with some photos. The rest will be on Flickr in due course.
Normally I wouldn't drive hundreds of miles for an empty building but this was kind of special and was one that was on the list for a long time.
Thanks for looking in.
