Episode 138: Berlin during the Cold War - 'Capital of Spies'

Versus History Podcast

For this episode of the Versus History Podcast, we are fortunate enough to be joined by Historian Bernd von Kostka, discussing Berlin during the Cold War and the book that he has co-authored, entitled ‘Capital of Spies: Intelligence Agencies in Berlin During the Cold War’. We cover lots of ground during the discussion, including legacies of the Cold War, Berlin’s geostrategic position during the conflict and the little-known ‘spy tunnel’ and lots more besides. The description of the fascinating book ‘Capital of Spies’ is as follows:

‘For almost half a century, the hottest front in the Cold War was right across Berlin. From summer 1945 until 1990, the secret services of NATO and the Warsaw Pact fought an ongoing duel in the dark. Throughout the Cold War, espionage was part of everyday life in both East and West Berlin, with German spies playing a crucial part of operations on both sides: Erich Mielke's Stasi and Reinhard Gehlen's Federal Intelligence Service, for example.

The construction of the wall in 1961 changed the political situation and the environment for espionage—the invisible front was now concreted and unmistakable. But the fundamentals had not changed: Berlin was and would remain the capital of spies until the fall of the Berlin Wall, a fact which makes it all the more surprising that there are hardly any books about the work of the secret services in Berlin during the Cold War. Journalist Sven Felix Kellerhoff and historian Bernd von Kostka describe the spectacular successes and failures of the various secret services based in the city.’

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