After the Berlin Wall had divided St. Michael's parish, a new St. Michael's Church was built on Waldemarstraße on the western side of the wall according to the plans of architect Hans Schaefer. The church was initially proposed as a temporary solution with a view to a future reunification with the original Church (then on the eastern side).
In August 1961, the Berlin Wall was built. It split St. Michael’s parish into eastern and western parts. After the fall of the Wall in 1989, the community remained divided; its two parts were each merged with neighbouring parishes. Engelbecken, which had been filled with rubble following the Second World War, was excavated.
In Bad Godesberg in West Germany, the Federal Republic of Germany and Turkey signed a "recruitment agreement". Similar agreements with Italy, Spain and Greece had already been made. Turkish workers were now able to apply for jobs in Germany and enter the Federal Republic as "guest workers". Their stay was initially limited to two years. Among those arriving were Alevis. This was the beginning of the Turkish diaspora in Germany.
On the site of a former factory (now Waldemarstraße 20 in Berlin-Kreuzberg), a building was converted into a Christian meeting place. In December, the inauguration of a new Apostolic Church took place. Forty years later, the church was closed.
The National Socialists destroyed synagogues in the Engelbecken area in Prinzenstraße, Dresdener Strasse and Kopenickerstrasse. Following the bombings in 1944-45, St. Michael’s lay in partial ruin, with most of the surrounding area completely devastated.
The Berlin Senate had the Luisenstadt canal filled in because of the increasingly unpleasant smell and danger of epidemics. Engelbecken remained. The landscape architect, Erwin Barth, planned the creation of an “Indian Garden” in the area where the canal had been. It was to feature green spaces and a pond. The idea, modelled on the Taj Mahal, was that the dome of St. Michael would be reflected in the water. A bronze Buddha sculpture was also erected.
Catholic workers and soldiers moved to the Protestant-dominated area of Brandenburg-Prussia [now Berlin]. Many of them came from Poland and Silesia. They were involved in the construction of the Luisenstadt canal, commissioned by King Friedrich Wilhelm IV. Construction began during the Revolution of 1848. A civic militia supervised the workers – this was the only way to ensure completion of the project.
In 1816, there were already 2076 Catholics serving in the military. By 1858, this number had more than doubled: it was time to build a Catholic garrison church. Protestant garrison churches had already been in existence since the early 18th century.
In 1851 the foundation was laid for a Catholic garrison church called St. Michael. The episcopal inauguration was held in 1861. Late-Romantic urban planning, the design movement of the time, called for a body of water in front of the church. This was to be the Luisenstadt canal. St Michael’s was referred to as “by far the most beautiful church in Berlin” by Theodor Fontane.
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