23 August 1961 · Over the wall · Glienicker Brücke and Klein Glienicke
A breakthrough from a garden on Am Waldrand, Klein Glienicke
On 23 August 1961 the border was broken through from the property Am Waldrand 2–3 in Klein Glienicke, a garden that directly adjoined West Berlin.
Klein Glienicke is a part of Potsdam on the edge of West Berlin.
The Stasi situation report of 24 August 1961 lists a breakthrough on 23 August from the property Am Waldrand 2–3 in Klein Glienicke, noting that this property 'borders directly on West Berlin territory'.
The report does not say who crossed, how many people went or how they got through the wire. It is one of five breakthroughs from the GDR into West Berlin that the Stasi counted that day.
Sources
Whose account is this? Told from a GDR record only: documents of the GDR’s police, Stasi or border troops. No other account of the event is cited.
GDR records
- Jahrgang 1961: Lage nach dem Bau der Berliner Mauer (7) – Bericht Nr. 477/61, 24. August 1961Stasi-Unterlagen-Archiv (DDR im Blick)
Facts checked against the sources: September 2026
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Cite this page
Berlin Experiences, “A breakthrough from a garden on Am Waldrand, Klein Glienicke”, Berlin Wall Escapes, 2026, https://berlinwallescapes.com/escapes/am-waldrand-klein-glienicke-1961/ (accessed [date]).
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