Kassberg Prison Memorial and Learning Center

As the former site of the East German regime's ransoming of prisoners, the Kaßberg Prison in Chemnitz is an important memorial to GDR injustice and the division of Germany. For most of the more than 33,000 political prisoners who were ransomed from GDR imprisonment by the federal government between 1962/1963 and 1989, it was from here that they were released. The building complex also served as a detention center for the State Security Service and, previously, for the Soviet secret police, the NKVD/MGB. During the Nazi era, members of various persecuted groups were imprisoned in Kaßberg Prison. For opening hours, see: gedenkort-kassberg.deAddition: KASSBERG PRISON LEARNING AND MEMORIAL SITE
In October 2023, a learning center with a permanent exhibition opened in the former prison wing B. The focus is on the fates of former inmates from various eras. Their life stories are told in the former cells with photos, documents, objects, and numerous video interviews. The memorial site has existed since 2017 on the former outer wall of the prison. Wall segments and a watchtower have been preserved there. An outdoor tour of the former prison grounds connects the memorial site and the learning center. It commemorates the use of the site in the past and recalls parts of the building that have disappeared.
Opening hours: Wed - Sun: 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

The stories on the large explanatory panels at the "Kassberg Prison Learning and Memorial Site" were a dreadful part of my otherwise wonderful city tour at the end of May 2025. Even when it's closed, the panels are always available to the public, and an outdoor tour is also always possible.