Gedenkstätte Deutscher Widerstand

Current exhibitions

About the museum

The Bendlerblock on the edge of the Tiergarten was built from 1911 for the Imperial Naval Office and remained in military use until 1945. It was here that Hitler addressed the Reichswehr leadership in February 1933, and here that the nerve center of the coup attempt of July 20, 1944, was located. That same night, Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg, Friedrich Olbricht, Albrecht Ritter Mertz von Quirnheim and Werner von Haeften were shot in the courtyard; Ludwig Beck died inside the building.

In 1953, a memorial with a bronze figure by Richard Scheibe was unveiled in the Ehrenhof (Court of Honor) at this site, and in 1955 the street was named after Stauffenberg. On July 20, 1968, the Berlin Senate opened a first memorial and education center with an exhibition. From 1983, it was developed into a place that shows the resistance in its full breadth – from the labor movement and churches through young people and exiles to the military. The newly designed permanent exhibition opened in the historic rooms in 1989; the inclusion of communist groups sparked a public debate at the time.

In addition to the Bendlerblock, the Stiftung Gedenkstätte Deutscher Widerstand now also oversees the Plötzensee Memorial, the Museum Blindenwerkstatt Otto Weidt and the Gedenkstätte Stille Helden (Silent Heroes Memorial), whose exhibition has been shown in the Bendlerblock since 2018. The institution also includes a specialist library with more than 100,000 volumes and a visible storage display on the Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold. Since January 2026, Julia Spohr has headed the foundation as successor to Johannes Tuchel.

Highlights

• Ehrenhof with memorial at the site of the executions of July 20, 1944
• Stauffenberg's former office as part of the exhibition
• Permanent exhibition with 18 thematic sections on resistance in all its forms
• Exhibition “Stille Helden” (Silent Heroes) about help for persecuted Jews
• Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold visible storage display
• Free audio tour in seven languages and video tour in sign language

Permanent exhibitions

• Widerstand gegen den Nationalsozialismus – In 18 thematic sections, the permanent exhibition shows how people from all social and ideological backgrounds resisted the Nazi dictatorship – up to the coup attempt of July 20, 1944, at this very site.
• Schaudepot Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold – Objects, images and documents of the Reichsbanner, founded in 1924, a nonpartisan mass organization that defended the Weimar Republic; open on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Founded

1968

Operated by

Stiftung Gedenkstätte Deutscher Widerstand

Director

Julia Spohr

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Admission, audio tour, public guided tours and group tours are free of charge.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: not available
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours
• Easy-to-read materials
• Audio description: no information

Ehrenhof only partly suitable for wheelchairs due to cobblestones; main entrance with ramp and automatic doors. Elevator (door width 88 cm, depth 130 cm) to the permanent exhibition (third floor) and special exhibition (second floor); tables and media stations with knee clearance. Accessible restroom on the third floor. Library on the first floor not wheelchair-accessible. Video tour in German Sign Language, thematic catalog in Easy Language.

Kids & families

Only partly suitable for kids

• Family tours & workshops: not available

Memorial without dedicated programs for children and families; the free educational programs are aimed at young people aged 14 and up and adults.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

Exhibition catalogs can be ordered.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Plan your visit