Swastika’s and Nazi eagles were often relatively easy to be removed. But in a state of chaos with shortages on every aspect of life, tearing down buildings did not have priority and would have been a waste, especially when they could still be used. Most of the still standing Nazi-structures therefore were reused after the war. The Olympia stadium and Tempelhof Airport in Berlin kept their original function. The enormous Reichsluftwaffeministerium, Europe’s biggest office building, survived the war and became the center of the Soviet controlled GDR government. Nazi symbolism was replaced by even bigger socialist symbolism, such as a 18 meter long mural by Max Lingner, depicting the ideals of the socialist German state.
Whereas most Nazi buildings throughout Germany had a particular function they could continue to fullfill, such as theaters and office buildings, this wasn’t the case for the rally grounds. For almost twenty years neither the new national governments, nor the municipality of Nuremberg dared to burn their fingers on this contentious area. The grounds remained neglected, parts of the enormous but unfinished Kongresshalle were simply used as storage rooms by local entrepreneurs. …show more content…
Speer made impressions of how the site would look in a thousand years. The Nazis romanticised the idea of ruins, as they would generate feelings of wonder and awe. (mcdonald) The buildings had to remind future civilisations of the greatness and were built to proclaim the Wort aus Stein. Although only parts of the original plans of the rally grounds were finished at the end of the war, a substantial amount of them still stands and is in fact able to put forward this proclamation. It is here that the issue of undesirable heritage
Whereas most Nazi buildings throughout Germany had a particular function they could continue to fullfill, such as theaters and office buildings, this wasn’t the case for the rally grounds. For almost twenty years neither the new national governments, nor the municipality of Nuremberg dared to burn their fingers on this contentious area. The grounds remained neglected, parts of the enormous but unfinished Kongresshalle were simply used as storage rooms by local entrepreneurs. …show more content…
Speer made impressions of how the site would look in a thousand years. The Nazis romanticised the idea of ruins, as they would generate feelings of wonder and awe. (mcdonald) The buildings had to remind future civilisations of the greatness and were built to proclaim the Wort aus Stein. Although only parts of the original plans of the rally grounds were finished at the end of the war, a substantial amount of them still stands and is in fact able to put forward this proclamation. It is here that the issue of undesirable heritage