NS Documen­tation Centre (NS-DOK)

The NS Documentation Center (NS-DOK) is a museum of contemporary history and one of the largest municipal memorial sites for the victims of National Socialism. The NS-DOK is housed in the EL-DE House. Named after its builder, Leopold Dahmen, this building was the headquarters of the Cologne Secret State Police (Gestapo) from 1935 to 1945. The building became the epitome of Nazi terror in Cologne and the Rhineland: from here, Gestapo officers organized the systematic surveillance of the population and spread violence and terror. It was here that the gradual disenfranchisement and deportation of Cologne's Jews to the ghettos and extermination camps was organized. Political opponents of the regime, foreign forced laborers, members of minorities, and social outsiders who were considered “inferior” under Nazi racist ideology were brutally interrogated and tortured in the building's prison.

Numerous inscriptions and drawings by former prisoners have been preserved on the walls of the cells in the basement of the EL-DE House, bearing witness to the brutality of the Gestapo and the inhumane conditions of detention. From 1944 until the American army marched in in March 1945, at least 400 executions took place on the courtyard grounds.

The building has been a listed monument since the early 1980s. Today, the EL-DE House houses a memorial, the permanent exhibition “Cologne under National Socialism,” a documentation center, and a library. The NS-DOK presents several of its own and external temporary exhibitions each year and organizes events on historical and political topics with a focus on the history of National Socialism.

The house is dedicated to commemorating the victims of National Socialism, research, and educational work. Research into the history of the Jewish population and other persecuted minorities is a central task of the institution, which has led to international contacts with survivors and relatives.

The contemporary section deals with current right-wing extremism, racism, and anti-Semitism. In addition to various educational programs, the staff's tasks include accompanying and supporting civil society actors, documenting anti-Semitic incidents in Cologne, and advising those affected by anti-Semitism.

Finally, with its 2023 expanded educational offerings, “Junges Museum” (Young Museum), “Remote Island,” and the “Erzählcafés” (storytelling cafés), the NS-DOK makes an important contribution to democracy education, thus complementing its existing exhibition and educational offerings.