EL-DE House

The EL-DE house is a museum and memorial to the Gestapo prison and Nazi era in Cologne. The main exhibit is the house itself, which was the local Gestapo headquarters and prison. Down in the basement you can visit the prison cells where "undesirables" were tortured and killed. The tiny cells were considered over-crowded even by Gestapo standards, with 25-30 people in rooms of only a few square metres. Most poignantly, over 1800 inscriptions from the prisoners kept in the cells have been preserved, ranging from calendars to sketches to written pleas.

Upstairs the exhibit focuses on the local rise to power of the Nazi party in Cologne, starting from WWI and going through the different political and social factors that contributed to the rise, the effect of Nazi policy on the city and the collaboration of official institutions with the Party. It is the type of "no holds barred" confrontation with the past that Germany had to do and should be proud of doing so well.

Entry cost is €3.60/adult, €1.50/concession