11th October 2006
The exhibition, 'Germany under Control,' which opened in London on 7th June 1946, can tell us much about how the British Control Commission and Military Government in Germany wanted to present themselves to people at home. Having won the war, what were the British now doing to win the peace?
Two weeks before the exhibition opened, on 25th May 1946, the British Zone Review, the official journal of the Control Commission for Germany (CCG), published an article on how the London exhibition would illustrate 'achievements and problems in the British Zone.'
"It will endeavour to explain to the public at home what the 22,000 odd solders and civilians working for the CCG are doing in conjunction with the men and women of the three services stationed in Germany."
"In his last budget speech, the Chancellor of the Exchequer stated that the occupation of Germany would cost Great Britain £80,000,000 a year."
The exhibition would, the article continued
"...emphasize the necessity for continued effort in the interests of world peace and prosperity. We have won the war: we have yet to prove that we have won the peace. The verdict of history on this last struggle will be based largely on the achievements of the Control Commission."
"The first section of the exhibitions will represent the chaos and destruction in Germany a year ago when the allies first entered the country."
"From destruction, the visitor passes to the beginnings of law and order. A white section will show in charts, photographs, and captions, the allies' intentions for Germany embodied in the Potsdam declaration, and the machinery created to carry out those plans."
"From this section, the visitor is taken to a display of the British component of the Allied Control Authority."
"The remainder of the exhibition is taken up with further detailed displays of the various problems facing the British in Germany."
"First comes the economic problem, with its inherent vicious circle. Coal is a paramount necessity; coal requires transport, transport requires steel and industry; steel and industry require coal... A model of the smashed Bielefeld viaduct will introduce the visitor to this problem ..."
"From the economic problem the visitor passes on to finance, from finance to food, where he can see a model of the normal ration for the German people. From food he proceeds to displaced persons and population movements of all kinds within Germany. A glimpse is given of the everyday problems of the German people - paramount among which are the problems of housing and health."
"A staircase then leads the visitor up to the sections which deal with the re-education of the Germans and the rebuilding among them of a democratic way of life. The actual education problem is dealt with at length together with the reorganisation and reconstitution of local government, police, law, trade unions and political parties."
"The visitor is then confronted with a large board, with illustrated sections lit up, designed to sum up the whole of the exhibition and to give the visitor something fairly concise to carry away in his mind. So often, after seeing an exhibition, no very definite impression remains. This section will try to avoid that by gathering together all the various subjects and presenting them with a simple message:- 'We're in Germany to finish the job.'"
"This part of the exhibition has intentionally been made as popular as possible, and is designed to enable 7,000 people a day to pass through without missing anything of its purpose."
To cater for the expert "there will be an Information Room on the site of the exhibition, but away from the main display sections."
"Experts from all Divisions of the CCG will be on site to answer questions either at a special desk in the Information room or at the various sections in the popular part of the exhibition."
"It has been designed and constructed by the Exhibition Division of the Central Office of Information in collaboration with the Control Office for Germany."