Berlin-Paris and the topography of the metropolises 1937 - 1945 (MetropoL40)

How did urban planning work during the war? What goals were pursued? What urban planning concepts and models emerged in Europe in the 1930s? And what connections existed between Berlin and Paris shortly before and during the occupation?

The research project Berlin-Paris und die Topografie der Metropolen 1937 – 1945 (Berlin-Paris and the Topography of Metropolises 1937 - 1945) sets out in search of the intertwined lines of urban planning history between the two European metropolises. In particular, we are looking at the major plans of the 1930s: the planning for the Parisian capital region and the concepts of the General Building Inspector for the Reich Capital (GBI), one of the central planning authorities of the Nazi dictatorship under the direction of the architect Albert Speer.

The research, which will be carried out at the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam until 2028 in collaboration with our partner institution ENSA Paris-Belleville and many other collaborations, promises new perspectives on the history of urban planning in Berlin and on the role of Albert Speer, who directed the urban planning fortunes of the Reich capital from 1937 and also held the office of Minister of Armaments from 1941. The project sheds light on the different ideas and draft plans for the development of the city as a whole and Berlin's capitalisation. The history of urban-regional planning in Paris, which is still the subject of debate today under the catchword Grand Paris, is also given a new depth of focus by highlighting lines of continuity up to the 1930s.

An initial accent will be set with a precise description of the 1937 World Exhibition in Paris. Not only did Albert Speer and the Nazi regime have the opportunity to present themselves internationally against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower by means of architectural monumentality - in this year, Paris was a focal point of urban planning discourse through various specialist conferences and congresses, as well as a large number of specialist and thematic national pavilions. At the same time, ongoing urban growth, the experience of the crisis around 1929/30 and new forms of mobility (motorised transport, aviation, etc.) culminated in new challenges for urban planning as a whole. Building on the innovations of the 1910s, this made up a significant part of the specialist debate during this period.

One challenge of the project is the fragmented nature of the GBI holdings. In close cooperation with the preserving institutions in Germany and abroad, an institutional-historical summary of the GBI is part of the first step in the debate. The "interferences" between Paris and Berlin - for example with regard to old town renewal, transport concepts or open space planning - are then condensed into a new planning-historical perspective on the history of both metropolises. Last but not least, the project questions the established narrative that the Second World War led to a standstill in urban development. Legislative and institutional innovations during the war years are examined as well as the connection between urban planning, military requirements, forced labour and occupation policy.