Orwell hit the nail on the head in Animal Farm when he said, in reference to the Soviet system, ‘All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others’. For those at the top of the pecking order, such as senior Party members, ministers, high-ranking officers of State Security, etc, Western goods were readily accessible, as well as domestic goods intended for the international market, which were of better quality than those sold in the shops. Skilled professionals, including scientists, doctors and engineers, also enjoyed greater privileges. In East Germany, senior ministers chose to be chauffeured around in lengthened Volvos rather than the traditional Russian limousines, and their secure housing zone of Waldsiedlung quickly gained the nicknamed ‘Volvograd’.
Imported Volvos were, however, available to anyone who had been on the waiting list a year and could pay the asking price straight away, which in 1977 amounted to 42,600 Marks. In 1976, the average monthly wage was 400 Marks, so for most people any car was a luxury and the average waiting list was ten years. Home mechanics were the norm and, because the best-produced vehicles were reserved for export only, it was prudent to check nuts and bolts with a spanner before leaving the forecourt. Quite simply, private cars were deemed unnecessary because public transport, being heavily subsidised, was cheap. Cars were for the family and sports cars were rare. However, home-produced sports cars did exist in the form of the Melkus RS1000, a 2-seat coupe with a top speed of 165 kph (102 mph), which were produced between 1969 and 1979.
When it came to tourism, East Germany did indeed have luxury hotels, the most familiar being the Interhotel chain, which was founded in 1965 and included 5-, 4-, and 3-star ratings. Other luxury hotels included the ‘Neptun’ in Warnemünde and ‘Cecilienhof Castle’ in Potsdam, and the Union of Consumer Co-operatives (VDK) also ran 4- and 3-star hotels. Being state-run, the Interhotel hotels were controlled by the Stasi, under the Tourist Department, and international guests were routinely monitored. Prostitutes were often employed and hotel rooms rigged for audio and video surveillance.
So, for most people in East Germany luxury was just a dream. However, for the Party elite it was the norm. And for those in a skilled profession with higher income, it was absolutely within reach.
Further Reading
A select bibliography appears at the end of The Retrieval Chamber, but for greater detail on cars of the Socialist Bloc, I recommend:
- THOMPSON, Andy, Cars of Eastern Europe: The Definitive History (Yeovil: Haynes Publishing, 2011)
- A particularly interesting article on Interhotels and the Stasi can be found online at: https://www.stasi-unterlagen-archiv.de/informationen-zur-stasi/themen/beitrag/ueberwachungsmassnahmen-im-hotel-bellevue-in-dresden/
Photo: Melkus RS 1000 at Classic-Gala 2021, Alexander Migl / CC BY-SA 4.0.