Zehlendorf (Berlin)

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Zehlendorf is an area within the borough of Steglitz-Zehlendorf in Berlin. Before Berlin's 2001 administrative reform Zehlendorf was a borough in its own right, consisting of the locality of Zehlendorf as well as Wannsee, Nikolassee, and Dahlem.

Zehlendorf contains some of the most remarked upon natural settings in Berlin, including the Schlachtensee and Nikolassee. Additionally, it has interesting residential neighborhoods, some with cobblestone streets and buildings that are over 100 years old-- interesting because most of Berlin's residences are newer. There is direct access to the middle of Berlin via road and S-Bahn. The S1 line makes 3 stops in Zehlendorf and runs right through Unter den Linden, where the Brandenburg Gate is located. The newer portion of the borough of Zehlendorf developed around extended U-Bahn service in the first third of the 20th Century. It may be reached via the U3 line (destination Krumme Lanke).

In the affluent and well-educated environment of Zehlendorf, top World War II figures mingled with opponents of the Nazi regime. Express S-Bahn trains, known as the "Banker Trains" whisked them at 120 km/h to the financial and government centers until the service was disrupted near the end of World War II.^[1]

Visitors can stop at the Dahlem Church, where the vicar, Pastor Martin Niemöller, served from 1931 through 1937. Niemöller's sermons against the Nazis led to his imprisonment and the publication of them in English during the war helped shape discussion of the nature of National Socialism in Christian circles.^[2]

Many walking trips are available in and around Zehlendorf. Popular destinations include the Grunewald trails north from the Onkel Toms Hütte U-Bahn station and neighborhood shopping center, the walk from Krumme Lanke U-Bahn station to the lake of the same name, and the cross-Zehlendorf walk from the end of the U-Bahn at Krumme Lanke to the S-Bahn station in the center of old Zehlendorf.

When American forces occupied Berlin and later were stationed in Berlin during the Cold War, Zehlendorf was the area where most of those forces were centered. The American Consulate is still located in Zehlendorf. The exclave of Steinstücken, which belonged to Zehlendorf, was a curiosity during the cold war.

It is also home to the John F. Kennedy School , an international school. For many years, broken by WW2, there was an annual school exchange between the gymnasium in Zehlendorf and Wallasey Grammar School in the UK. Many lasting friendships were made and the visits of teeenage boys to early post war Berlin left deep emotions and must have helped the rehabilitation of Germany to the rest of Europe.

[edit] External links

• "VSWB" English language page from German site on rails and other transport modes of Southwest Berlin.

• "Berlin 1969" From the American era, begins with account of a summer night in Zehlendorf.

[edit] Footnotes

1. ^ * Dittfurth, Udo and Braun, Dr. Michael; "Die elektrische Wannseebahn"; Verlag GVE; Berlin; 2004; page 82. This book also has additional historical information about 20th Century Zehlendorf.
2. ^ * Preface by Thomas Mann in Niemoeller, Martin; "God is My Fuehrer"; Philosophical Library and Alliance Book Corporation; New York, 1941, pages 3-14.

Coordinates: 52°26′N 13°15′E