Berlin Zoological Garden

About

The Berlin Zoological Garden (German: Zoologischer Garten Berlin, pronounced [tsoːoˌloːɡɪʃɐ ˈɡaʁtn̩ bɛʁˈliːn] ) is the oldest surviving and best-known zoo in Germany. Opened in 1844, it covers 35 hectares (86.5 acres) and is located in Berlin's Tiergarten. With about 1,380 different species and over 20,200 animals, the zoo presents one of the most comprehensive collections of species in the world. The zoo and its aquarium had more than 3.5 million visitors in 2017. It is the most-visited zoo in Europe and one of the most popular worldwide. Regular animal feedings are among its most famous attractions. Globally known animals like Knut, the polar bear, and Bao Bao, the giant panda have contributed to the zoo's public image. The zoo collaborates with many universities, research institutes, and other zoos around the world. It maintains and promotes European breeding programmes, helps safeguard several endangered species, and participates in several species reintroduction programs.

Opened on 1 August 1844, the Zoologischer Garten Berlin was the second zoo in Germany after the short-lived "Thiergarten" in Hamburg-Horn. The aquarium opened in 1913. The first animals were donated by Frederick William IV, King of Prussia, from the menagerie at Pfaueninsel island and pheasantry of the Tiergarten. The nearby U-Bahn station was opened in 1882.

From the mid-1870s onward, indigenous people were put on display as exhibits in zoos throughout the German Empire. Referred to as Völkerschauen (literally "people shows") 25 such expositions took place at the Berlin Zoo.

In 1878, the Berlin Zoo hosted its first Völkerschau : the "Nubian Caravan" [ de ] organized by Carl Hagenbeck. In 1880 Hagenback organized an exhibition of "Eskimos" [ de ], and in 1881, Hagenbeck's exhibition of the “Fuegians” [ de ] —a group Kawesqar people forcibly brought to Europe from Tierra del Fuego —was put on display for approximately five weeks in the Ostrich House.

Contemporary reports indicate these events were so popular that crowds overwhelmed the facilities. From Sunday, November 6, 1881:

By late morning, the number of visitors had already reached approximately 20,000, and by 5:15 p.m.—at which time the ticket offices were closed—it had risen to 37,163. While everything proceeded quite calmly during the morning hours, a terrible crush developed in the afternoon around the Pescherähs [the contemporary term for the Kawesqar people]; indeed, some forty planks of the enclosure fence were smashed in, and the guards struggled mightily to maintain any semblance of order. However, when the Fuegians retreated into the inner chambers of their earthen dwelling at 5:30 p.m., the tumult assumed alarming proportions. "Out with the Fuegians!" roared a chorus of a thousand voices. Benches and chairs were smashed, and only with the aid of requisitioned police officers was order finally restored, whereupon the crowd dispersed around 7 p.m.

The anatomist and anthropologist Rudolf Virchow conducted his own examinations of the ten Kawesqar at the Berlin Zoo and presented his findings on November 14, 1881, during a well-attended lecture before the Berlin Society for Anthropology, Ethnology, and Prehistory in the hall of the Zoological Garden, presenting them as a "race" on the "lowest rung" and potential cannibals. During his lecture, he made the remark: "Unfortunately, there is a severe shortage of Tierra del Fuego skulls." One of the last "ethnographic shows" held at the Berlin Zoo was the Sara-Kaba Show [ de ] organized by Willy Siebold [ de ], which ran from April 22 to mid-May 1931.

In 1938, the Berlin Zoo got rid of Jewish board members and forced Jewish shareholders to sell their stocks at a loss, before re-selling the stocks in an effort to Aryanize the institution. Starting in 1939, Jews were also prevented from visiting the zoo. Zoo director Lutz Heck was named chief of the Oberste Naturschütz Behörde im Reichsforstamt (highest nature preservation agency in the state department of forestry) by his friend Hermann Göring in the summer of 1938 and in this capacity he was the senior responsible person for the entire nature management.

During World War II, the zoo area was hit by Allied bombs for the first time on 8 September 1941. Most damage was done during the bombardments on 22 and 23 November 1943.

In less than 15 minutes, 30% of the zoo population was killed on the first day, and on the second day the aquarium building was completely destroyed by a direct hit. Of the eight elephants, only one survived, the bull Siam; two-year-old hippo bull Knautschke was saved from the gunfire in his animal house. Most damage was done during the Battle of Berlin : from 22 April 1945 onwards, the zoo was under constant artillery fire of the Red Army. Heavy fighting took place in the zoo area through 30 April, and safety measures forced the zoo keepers to kill some predators and other dangerous animals.

Next to the zoo stood the Zoo Tower, a huge flak tower that was one of the last remaining areas of Nazi German resistance against the Red Army, with its bunkers and anti-aircraft weapons defending against Allied air forces. At the entrance of the zoo, there was a small underground shelter for zoo visitors and keepers. During the battle, wounded German soldiers were taken care of here by female personnel and the wives of zookeepers. On 30 April, the zoo flak bunker surrendered.

A count on 31 May 1945 revealed only 91 of 3,715 animals had survived, including two lion cubs, two hyenas, Asian bull elephant Siam, hippo bull Knautschke, ten hamadryas baboons, a chimpanzee, and a black stork. After the battle, some animals had escaped, while some of the killed animals were subsequently eaten by Red Army soldiers.

Following the zoo's destruction, it and the associated aquarium were reconstructed on modern principles so as to display the animals in as close to their natural environment as then feasible. The success in breeding animals, including some rare species, demonstrates the efficacy of these new methods.

The zoo is located in what became West Berlin, hence a second zoo— Tierpark Berlin —was built in the East. There was virtually no public attention paid to the zoo's Third Reich history until 2000, when Werner Cohn, whose father was a former shareholder, wrote to enquire about the fate of those shares. The zoo initially denied that Jewish shareholders were forced to sell their shares, but as a public scandal ensued, it ultimately acknowledged this. It commissioned a historian to identify these past shareholders and track down their descendants, according to a report by AFP.

From the mid-1870s onward, indigenous people were put on display as exhibits in zoos throughout the German Empire. Referred to as Völkerschauen (literally "people shows") 25 such expositions took place at the Berlin Zoo.

In 1878, the Berlin Zoo hosted its first Völkerschau : the "Nubian Caravan" [ de ] organized by Carl Hagenbeck. In 1880 Hagenback organized an exhibition of "Eskimos" [ de ], and in 1881, Hagenbeck's exhibition of the “Fuegians” [ de ] —a group Kawesqar people forcibly brought to Europe from Tierra del Fuego —was put on display for approximately five weeks in the Ostrich House.

Contemporary reports indicate these events were so popular that crowds overwhelmed the facilities. From Sunday, November 6, 1881:

By late morning, the number of visitors had already reached approximately 20,000, and by 5:15 p.m.—at which time the ticket offices were closed—it had risen to 37,163. While everything proceeded quite calmly during the morning hours, a terrible crush developed in the afternoon around the Pescherähs [the contemporary term for the Kawesqar people]; indeed, some forty planks of the enclosure fence were smashed in, and the guards struggled mightily to maintain any semblance of order. However, when the Fuegians retreated into the inner chambers of their earthen dwelling at 5:30 p.m., the tumult assumed alarming proportions. "Out with the Fuegians!" roared a chorus of a thousand voices. Benches and chairs were smashed, and only with the aid of requisitioned police officers was order finally restored, whereupon the crowd dispersed around 7 p.m.

The anatomist and anthropologist Rudolf Virchow conducted his own examinations of the ten Kawesqar at the Berlin Zoo and presented his findings on November 14, 1881, during a well-attended lecture before the Berlin Society for Anthropology, Ethnology, and Prehistory in the hall of the Zoological Garden, presenting them as a "race" on the "lowest rung" and potential cannibals. During his lecture, he made the remark: "Unfortunately, there is a severe shortage of Tierra del Fuego skulls." One of the last "ethnographic shows" held at the Berlin Zoo was the Sara-Kaba Show [ de ] organized by Willy Siebold [ de ], which ran from April 22 to mid-May 1931.

In 1938, the Berlin Zoo got rid of Jewish board members and forced Jewish shareholders to sell their stocks at a loss, before re-selling the stocks in an effort to Aryanize the institution. Starting in 1939, Jews were also prevented from visiting the zoo. Zoo director Lutz Heck was named chief of the Oberste Naturschütz Behörde im Reichsforstamt (highest nature preservation agency in the state department of forestry) by his friend Hermann Göring in the summer of 1938 and in this capacity he was the senior responsible person for the entire nature management.