History
The grounds of the Ministry of State Security's (Stasi) pretrial detention center were not marked on public maps and were a restricted military area. Initially used by the Soviet secret service, it was used by the Stasi from 1951 to 1989 for the detention and torture of opposition figures. A new building was added to the Stasi prison in 1961.
The compound, sealed off with watchtowers, high walls and metal gates, was the site of the central remand prison, a labor camp and other Ministry of State Security facilities. Prison conditions were inhumane, torture was physical and psychological.
Stasi-Prison Berlin-Hohenschönhausen | Flickr: Oh-Berlin.com CC-BY 2.0Permanent exhibition "Imprisoned in Hohenschönhausen - Testimonies of Political Persecution 1945 to 1989".
Over 300 photos and 500 artifacts vividly depict the history of the Stasi prison, and there are also over 100 media stations available. In addition, the premises of the former Hohenschönhausen prison can be visited as part of a two-hour guided tour, which is usually led by former prisoners.
Memorial plaque | Wiki Commons: OTFW CC-BY-SA 3.0Contemporary Witnesses Tell of the Unjust State of the GDR
Since the establishment of the memorial in 1994, guided tours of the Stasi prison in Berlin have been given by former inmates or historians who had to experience imprisonment and interrogation first-hand.