Berlin Wall Escapes1961–1989

24 September 1961 · Window jumps · Bernauer Straße

Marianne S. flees as the eviction squads arrive

On the morning the forced evictions began, Marianne S. roped down from a window on a washing line and fell five metres; her disabled partner was left behind.

Black-and-white photo taken over a low wall of breeze blocks topped with barbed wire: a line of canvas-covered lorries stands in a cobbled side street between tall apartment houses, with people and furniture on the pavement; signs in the foreground read 'Ende franz. Sektors' and 'Fin du secteur français'.
Lorries lined up in a side street off Bernauer Straße in early September 1961 to clear furniture from the border houses, weeks before the forced evictions began (CIA booklet photo) Photo: The Central Intelligence Agency. Wikimedia Commons, Public domain

On the morning of 24 September 1961 the forced evacuation of the border houses on Bernauer Straße began. When the eviction squads arrived, Marianne S. decided on the spot to flee.

She let herself down from a window of Bernauer Straße 8 on a washing line but fell five metres to the pavement. West Berlin police brought her to safety.

Colour photo of a red-brick neo-Gothic church rising behind a long wall of grey concrete blocks; an orange car is parked on the cobbled street in front and 'Die Mauer muss fallen' is painted on the wall.
The Reconciliation Church behind the Wall on Bernauer Straße in January 1978, a few doors from No. 8 Photo: Olga Bandelowa. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 de

Her boyfriend, who had a walking disability, stayed behind in the flat and was moved to Brunnenstraße the same day.

Sources

Historians and memorials

Facts checked against the sources: September 2026

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Berlin Experiences, “Marianne S. flees as the eviction squads arrive”, Berlin Wall Escapes, 2026, https://berlinwallescapes.com/escapes/marianne-s-bernauer-strasse-8-1961/ (accessed [date]).

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