Regierungsvierte in Berlin in Mitte, Germany — Northeast German Plain (The European Plain)
Lutz Haberlandt
Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, September 3, 2025
1. Lutz Haberlandt white cross
* 29.04.1938
† 27.05.1962
Lutz Haberlandt unternahm in der Nähe der Charité einen Fluchtversuch.
Er sprang vom Dach eines Schuppens, überwand eine Mauer und drang in den dortigen Grenzstreifen nahe der Sandkrugbrücke ein. Einem Warnschuss folgten zwei gezielte Schüsse. Nach einem Schädeldurchschuss tödlich verletzt. Ärzte, Schwestern, Patienten der Charité werden Zeugen, wie er fast eine Stunde im Gebüsch liegen gelassen wird, ehe DDR-Grenzer den Erschossenen bargen.
Lutz Haberlandt
Born April 29, 1938
Died May 27, 1962
Lutz Haberlandt attempted an escape near the Charité Hospital.
He jumped from the roof of a shed, climbed a wall, and penetrated the border strip near the Sandkrug Bridge. A warning shot was followed by two targeted shots. He was fatally wounded after being shot through the skull. Doctors, nurses, and patients at the Charité witnessed him being left lying in the bushes for almost an hour before East German border guards rescued him.
Erected
this page online
Topics and series. This memorial is listed in this topic list: War, Cold. In addition, it is included in the Berlin Wall series list. A significant historical date for this entry is May 27, 1962.
Location. 52° 31.056′ N, 13° 22.607′ E. Memorial is in Berlin, in Mitte. It is in Regierungsvierte. It is at the intersection of Ebertstraße and Scheidemannstraße, on the right when traveling south on Ebertstraße. Touch for map. Memorial is in this post office area: Berlin 10117, Germany. Touch for directions.
Regionally, it is in Europe, the European Union, Atlantic Europe, Central Europe, the Schengen Area, Western Europe, and the Western World. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Roman Empire and specifically also the Holy Roman Empire.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Dieter Wohlfahrt (here, next to this marker); Philipp Held (here, next to this marker); Axel Hannemann (here, next to this marker); Ingo Krüger (here, next to this marker); Chris Gueffroy (here, next to this marker); Den Toten des Volkaufstandes vom 17. Juni 1953 (here, next to this marker); Dieter Beilig (here, next to this marker); Peter Fechter (here, next to this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Berlin.
Also see . . . Lutz Haberstadt (Chronik der Mauer). Excerpt:
Lutz Haberlandt was probably not totally sober when he headed for the inner-city and entered the grounds of Charité Hospital, situated directly on the border. At about 4 p.m. two transport policemen, who were guarding the area from a nearby railroad bridge noticed(Submitted on September 29, 2025.)him there. The two guards later recorded that they observed the young man as he climbed onto the roof of a shed, removed his jacket and shoes and lay down in the sun. After a while he suddenly jumped down from the roof and climbed over the property wall into the cordoned-off border strip. Other border guards posted about a hundred meters away on a tower of the courthouse on Invalidenstrasse also noticed the young man do this. After firing a warning shot, the border guard K. aimed two shots directly at Lutz Haberlandt from the tower. One of the bullets hit him in the head, penetrating his skull and causing him to collapse. Doctors, nurses and patients at the nearby Charité psychiatric clinic who had witnessed the scene said that he was left lying in the shrubbery for about forty minutes. He was probably dead when the guards carried him away.Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, September 3, 20252. Lutz Haberlandt white cross - wide view (fifth from right)These plus an additional eight crosses on the Reichstag-side of the Spree River comprise the Weisse Kreuze (“White Crosses”) memorial, erected to commemorate those killed while trying to escape into West Berlin during the Cold War. White crosses were originally installed (as early as 1971) at the point nearest where the victims were killed, but over time their location was consolidated (albeit relocated one or more times, depending on the cross). The 2021 date given here for this memorial is the year given by a nearby sign for their “renewal”.
Other border guards had also fired shots to prevent him from escaping. A few bullets entered into West Berlin territory. Policemen on the west side returned the fire and a bullet grazed an East Berlin border guard’s helmet. East German propaganda claimed that the West Berliners’ use of firearms was a “severe provocation” and reacted as they had in the past with accusations and finger pointing.
A few days after Lutz Haberlandt’s violent death, the West Berlin police received anonymous tips, probably from his relatives in the West, that helped to establish the identity of the victim. At around 4 o’clock in the morning on the day after his death, East Berlin policemen and a state prosecutor appeared at the home of Lutz Haberlandt’s parents and informed them of his death. The mother asked if her son had been shot, which they confirmed. Then they searched the apartment and pressured the parents into agreeing to have the corpse cremated. The funeral took place on July 8 at the Weissensee Cemetery. The close family members gathered there. It took the family a long time to grasp that their son and brother had been murdered; it took months for his death to be realized. Her brother's grave and tombstone later disappeared from the cemetery in Weissensee without their knowledge.
Credits. This page was last revised on September 29, 2025. It was originally submitted on September 29, 2025, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. This page has been viewed 70 times since then and 16 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on September 29, 2025, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California.
