Inside the theater of the Hindenburghaus, one of the buildings at the former Olympic Village near Berlin, there is a panting of Lenin. After the Olympics the village was used by the Wehrmacht and after the Second World War by the Red Army. It is unknown if the painting was made by the Soviets, or later.

The Olympic Village was built for the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin. It started in 1934 and was completed in 1936 on a military-site in the area of Döberitzer Heide near Elstal (in the municipality of Wustermark). It covered about 55 hectares and was designed to accommodate roughly 4,000 to 4,600 athletes. From the start, the village was built with more than sport in mind. It was intended not only as a showcase for Nazi Germany but also as a future military installation. The village was constructed adjacent to the Döberitz military training area, and its buildings were made robust to serve as barracks after the Games. Shortly after the Games ended, the village was repurposed for military use by the German Wehrmacht.

The mural sits opposite a carved relief of Wehrmacht soldiers. The relief was plastered over by the Soviets and was uncovered after 1992. 

Red Army

After World War II, the site fell within the Soviet occupation zone. The Red Army took control of the village. They adapted the facilities for Soviet troops stationed in East Germany, and the site became part of the broader network of Soviet military infrastructure in the region. One of the more secretive uses of the village was by the KGB, which operated an interrogation center on the premises.

The Soviets used the site until their withdrawal in 1992. Thereafter, many buildings fell into disrepair.

Hindenburghaus

The Hindenburghaus occupies a prominent location in the southeast of the area, it is named in honor of the former Field Marshal and Reich President. It was built for the Olympic Games as a two-story structure with a longitudinal section, side wings, and transverse wings, which frame the main courtyard on the entrance side. The architects were Werner and Walter Marc.

The Hindenburghaus.

During the Olympic Games, it was designed and used as a community center. A ballroom was available for large events, theater and musical performances, and training rooms were also available for practice purposes. After the Olympic Games, the hall continued to be used, and other rooms were used as lecture and training rooms for the infantry school.

Soviet use

During the Soviet use of the site, it served as the Officers’ House, a cultural center with a divisional museum, library, and meeting rooms. It would be logic that the mural was made by the Soviets in honor of the leader. But it’s not. The wall was empty when the Red Army left the country.

Polizeiruf 110

The mural was made in 1997 as a set decoration for the crime series Polizeiruf 110, translated as Police call 110. It is a German krimi that began in the GDR as a counterpart to the West German Tatort. It first aired in 1971. After German reunification, Polizeiruf 110 was continued. It is the second most important crime series after Tatort and is comparable in quality and design.

The theater of the Hindenburghaus with the Lenin mural.

Today, the site is partly residential, and conversion work is underway to turn parts of the village into apartments and condominiums. The roof of the Hindenburghaus has been repaired several times. It is in good structural condition, but is currently unused.