Bernau bei Berlin (English Bernau by Berlin, commonly named Bernau) is a town in the Barnim district in Brandenburg in eastern Germany, located about 10 km (6.2 mi) northeast of Berlin.
History
Bärnau
Archaeological excavations of Mesolithic-era sites indicate that the area has been inhabited since about 8800 BC.[citation needed] The city was first mentioned in 1232. It was historically spelled "Bärnau" [ɛʁnaʊ̯] and since changed to Bernau [ˈbɛrnaʊ̯]. The reasons for its founding are not known. According to legend, Albert I of Brandenburg permitted the founding of the city in 1140 because of the good beer which was offered to him.
Bernau underwent an economic boom before the Thirty Years' War. Large parts of the defensive wall with town gate and wet moats were built during that period. These helped Bernau defend itself successfully against attackers, including the Hussites in 1432. However, conditions declined after the war and the plague. Frederick I of Prussia settled 25 Huguenot families, comprising craftsmen, farmers, traders, and scientists, in the town in 1699.
Development of Population since 1875 within the Current Boundaries (Blue Line: Population; Dotted Line: Comparison to Population Development of Brandenburg state; Grey Background: Time of Nazi rule; Red Background: Time of Communist rule)
Recent Population Development and Projections (Population Development before Census 2011 (blue line); Recent Population Development according to the Census in Germany in 2011 (blue bordered line); Official projections for 2005-2030 (yellow line); for 2014-2030 (red line); for 2017-2030 (scarlet line)
Bernau bei Berlin: Population development within the current boundaries (2017)[6]
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
1875
8,060
—
1890
9,583
+1.16%
1910
12,364
+1.28%
1925
13,403
+0.54%
1933
17,671
+3.52%
1939
20,256
+2.30%
1946
19,678
−0.41%
1950
20,482
+1.01%
1964
20,545
+0.02%
1971
20,511
−0.02%
1981
24,318
+1.72%
1985
25,386
+1.08%
1989
25,145
−0.24%
1990
24,532
−2.44%
1991
24,491
−0.17%
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
1992
24,693
+0.82%
1993
24,744
+0.21%
1994
24,913
+0.68%
1995
25,428
+2.07%
1996
27,208
+7.00%
1997
29,609
+8.82%
1998
31,231
+5.48%
1999
32,506
+4.08%
2000
33,086
+1.78%
2001
33,507
+1.27%
2002
33,882
+1.12%
2003
34,379
+1.47%
2004
34,995
+1.79%
2005
35,235
+0.69%
2006
35,546
+0.88%
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
2007
35,859
+0.88%
2008
36,059
+0.56%
2009
36,154
+0.26%
2010
36,338
+0.51%
2011
35,843
−1.36%
2012
36,020
+0.49%
2013
36,222
+0.56%
2014
36,547
+0.90%
2015
37,169
+1.70%
2016
37,725
+1.50%
2017
38,194
+1.24%
2018
38,825
+1.65%
2019
40,031
+3.11%
2020
40,908
+2.19%
Local Divisions
The Town has the following local divisions:
Birkenhöhe (since 2014)
Birkholz (incorporated in 1993, district since 2014)
Birkholzaue (since 2014)
Börnicke (since 2002)
Ladeburg (since 2001)
Lobetal (since 2002)
Schönow (since 2003)
Waldfrieden (since 2016)
Several small local settlements are also part of the city:
The museum of local history has two locations. One is the town gate with the former prison Hungerturm (Tower of Hunger). It is one of formerly three town gates, that were part of the defensive wall. Today, armour and instruments of torture of the Middle Ages are shown there. Common furniture from several epochs, and utensils of the executioner are exhibited in the Henkerhaus (executioner's house) to demonstrate life in the small town.
In 2005, the Wolf Kahlen Museum opened. Media art from over 40 years is shown there.
The church of St. Marien in the Late Gothic style dominates the skyline of the town. The nave was built in the 15th century.
Large parts of the defensive walls and wet moats of the Middle Ages are preserved. The defensive wall is supplemented by several lookout houses, the Pulverturm (armoury) and a town gate.
Until the 1960s, the city centre, enclosed by the defensive wall, consisted of small old buildings with timber framed construction. Most of them were disrepair because no funds were available in East Germany to renovate them. It was decided to change Bernau into an exemplary city of socialist architecture. Nearly all the old houses were torn down in the 1960s and 1970s and new Plattenbauten (buildings constructed of prefabricated concrete slabs) were built. The new houses had a maximum of four storeys to fit in with the historical architecture of the city.
The former ADGB school is located in the northeast of the town. It is the largest building in the Bauhaus style besides the Bauhaus itself.
Konrad Wolf (1925–1982), film director, President of the Academy of Arts, was the first city commander of Bernau after the Second World War (April 1945) at the age of 19, honorary citizen since 1975
^Megargee, Geoffrey P. (2009). The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Encyclopedia of Camps and Ghettos 1933–1945. Volume I. Indiana University Press, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. p. 1292. ISBN978-0-253-35328-3.
^"Ewakuacja piesza". Muzeum Martyrologiczne w Żabikowie (in Polish). Retrieved 8 November 2023.
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