Guide to the Kuratorium Unteilbares Deutschland photograph collection, 1959-1964
A Collection in
Special Collections and Archives
Collection Number C0061
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George Mason University Libraries
2006 By George Mason University Libraries. All rights reserved.
Processed by: Special Collections and Archives Staff
Administrative Information
Access Restrictions
Collection is open to research.
Use Restrictions
There are no restrictions.
Preferred Citation
Kuratorium Unteilbares Deutschland photograph collection, Collection #C0061, Special Collections and Archives, George Mason University.
Custodial History
Shortly after the KUD ceased to exist in 1991, Thomas Hill acquired the photograph archives from a former KUD member.
Acquisition Information
Purchased from Thomas Hill in 2009.
Processing Information
Processed by Jordan Patty in 2010. EAD markup completed by Eron Ackerman and Jordan Patty in 2010.
Historical Information
The KUD was organized on a national, state, and local level and cooperated with all institutions concerned with the "German Question": schools, universities, unions, industry, youth organizations, and the media in Germany and internationally. It functioned as an above party lines platform to discuss perspectives of reunification and to organize various campaigns to express the collective desire for unification. Leading members included important ministers of successive governments from all of the main political parties. The work of the KUD focused particularly on Berlin because the organization wanted the West German capital to move from Bonn to Berlin in order to more directly confront the Soviet sphere of influence. The KUD's influence diminished with the advent of Willy Brandt's Ostpolitik in which the two-state status quo was accepted as a fact and basis for a policy of détente in the late 1960s. In 1991 the KUD ceased to exist.
Scope and Content
The Kuratorium Unteilbares Deutschland (KUD) photograph collection consists of approximately 3,400 photographic prints that document the activities of the KUD, a West German organization that campaigned for reunification. Many of the photographs document the construction of the Berlin Wall and the response of West German citizens, including campaings, memorials, and exhibitions. There are also photographs of KUD leaders and visits by foreign political leaders. The photographs are almost all black and white prints and range in size from 3 x 4" to 11 x 17" with most measuring approximately 5 x 7".
Some of the most spectacular and dramatic images are found in the first three boxes that contain photographs of the Wall's construction and subsequent events that took place during the time of the Cuban missile crisis. Approximately half of the photographs are from professional news agencies, including the Associated Press, the Deutche Presse-Agentus, Aktueller Bilderdienst, and Telegraf/Bankhardt. The KUD members are repsonsible for the most of the remaining photographs that document their various activities and events. Each subject category represents a textbook illustration of the existence and activities of this important organization from the late 1950s through the early 1960s.
Arrangement
Organized by subject.
Related Material
Special Collections and Archives also holds a large collection of posters that document the history of East Germany from the 1940s through the first elections in the 1990s.
Index Terms
- Adenauer, Konrad, 1876-1967--Photographs.
- Brandt, Willy, 1913-1992--Photographs.
- Löbe, Paul, 1875-1967--Photographs.
- Lübke, Heinrich, 1894-1972--Photographs.
- Mende, Erich, 1916- --Photographs.
- Schütz, Wilhelm Wolfgang, 1911- ---Photographs.
- Wehner, Herbert, 1906-1990--Photographs.
- Berlin (Germany: East)--Photographs.
- Berlin (Germany: West)--Photographs.
- Berlin Wall, Berlin, Germany, 1961-1989--Photographs.
- Protest movements--Germany--Berlin--Photographs.
- Photographic prints.
- Portraits.
Persons:
Geographical Names:
Subjects:
Document Types:
Contents List
Consists of approximately 3,400 photographic prints that document the activities of the KUD, a West German organization that campaigned for reunification. The photographs are almost all black and white prints and range in size from 3 x 4" to 11 x 17" with most measuring approximately 5 x 7". There are also other materials, including ephemera and a book that features some of the photographs from the collection.
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11-6Dramatic Crossection,1959-1964
200 photograghs
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21-3Dramatic Crossection,1959-1964
200 photograghs
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24-6Building of the Wall,1959-1964
100 photograghs
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31-2Building of the Wall,1959-1964
83 photographs
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33Refugees and Escapes,1959-1964
55 photographs
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34-6East Germany Views and Daily Life,1959-1964
134 photographs
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41Dresden,1959-1964
51 photographs
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42Campaign: "Youth Speaks for Germany,"1959-1964
16 photographs
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43Campaign: "Children's Airlift,"1959-1964
6 photographs
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44-5Campaign: "Open the Gate" (The Brandenburg Gate),1959-1964
111 photographs
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46Konrad Adenauer (German Chancellor),1959-1964
44 photographs
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47-8Willy Brandt (Mayor of Berlin, German Chancellor),1959-1964
98 photographs
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51-2Heinrich Lubke (German President),1959-1964
116 photographs
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53Herbert Wehner (leading Social Democrat (SPD) and member of the Kuratorium),1959-1964
25 photographs
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54Erich Mende (leading Liberal Democrat (FDP) and member of the Kuratorium),1959-1964
30 photographs
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55Visiting Heads of State,1959-1964
49 photographs
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56Diverse Portraits,1959-1964
48 photographs
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57Public Rallies,1959-1964
79 photographs
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61-4Public Rallies,1959-1964
200 photographs
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65Wall Memorials,1959-1964
23 photographs
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66-7Memorials and Monuments,1959-1964
105 photographs
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68Exhibitions on the Division,1959-1964
50 photographs
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71-3Exhibitions on the Division,1959-1964
173 photographs
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74-6Art Against the Division,1959-1964
179 photographs
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81Various Campaigns of the Kuratorium,1959-1964
85 photographs
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82-6Campaign: "Christmas Trees for Berlin,"1959-1964
268 photographs
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91-5Various Personalities,1959-1964
400 photographs
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96Paul Lobe (first President of the Kuratorium),1959-1964
29 photographs
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101W. W. Schutz (second President of the Kuratorium, since 1967),1959-1964
57 photographs
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102-3Conferences and Conventions,1959-1964
181 photographs
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104-6Berlin,1959-1964
185 photographs
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111Factories and Production (in East Germany?),1959-1964
40 photographs
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112West Germany Views and Landscapes,1959-1964
42 photographs
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113Pommern - Buildings and People,1959-1964
31 photographs
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114Clippings, Ephemera, and Other Images,1959-1964
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115"It Happened at the Wall,"1959-1964
book
Significant Persons Associated With the Collection
- Adenauer, Konrad, 1876-1967--Photographs.
- Brandt, Willy, 1913-1992--Photographs.
- Löbe, Paul, 1875-1967--Photographs.
- Lübke, Heinrich, 1894-1972--Photographs.
- Mende, Erich, 1916- --Photographs.
- Schütz, Wilhelm Wolfgang, 1911- ---Photographs.
- Wehner, Herbert, 1906-1990--Photographs.
Significant Places Associated With the Collection
- Berlin (Germany: East)--Photographs.
- Berlin (Germany: West)--Photographs.