French Gendarmes in West-Berlin

In 1945, French gendarmes entered a devastated Berlin, a landscape of ruins where everything was scarce. Their first mission was that of an occupying force: hunting down Nazis and combating the black market that thrived on misery.

With the 1948 Blockade, the Cold War froze the new reality in place. The gendarmes, isolated at the heart of the enclave, underwent a transformation. From occupiers, they became the protectors of the French sector.

Their days were defined by symbolic and tense missions. They stood guard over Spandau Prison, watching over the last Nazi war criminals, including the infamous Rudolf Hess.

Then, in 1961, the Wall went up—a concrete scar splitting the city in two. They were placed on permanent alert. Their patrols ran along this symbol of oppression, their eyes turned eastward, ready for anything. They were no longer just gendarmes, but soldiers on the front lines of the Allied defense.

The fall of the Wall in 1989 signaled the end of their historic mission. After standing with the city for nearly half a century, the last gendarmes left Berlin in 1994.

From victors to guardians, they had been the silent witnesses and key players in Berlin's journey from darkness to freedom.