As the Second World War began, many restrictions were placed on the citizens of Nazi Germany. Blackout regulations were one of the major necessities that the government imposed during the first day of warfare. The reason for this was to limit the possibility of being bombed by their opposition, such as by Great Britain or France. However, this regulation proved to be very deadly for the citizens of Berlin, even though they were not fighting directly with foreign powers.
All lights needed to be shaded/filtered during the night, which limited visibility when trying to travel around the city at night. Automobiles, trains, and any other form of transportation had to follow the same restrictions. This made traveling extremely dangerous, but for the most part, people continued to go out in the evenings.
Nazi leaders continuously issued reminders about the blackout, such as “The enemy sees your light – black out!” (37). There were people who broke the policy and received public humiliation each time they failed to comply. Even though there were severe penalties for not obeying the regulation, citizens faced extreme danger while traveling at night in the dark. Accidents, murders, rapes, robberies and other serious crimes were committed throughout the war. Therefore, the death rate continued to remain relatively constant.
Berlin at War describes some gruesome murders, such as the dismemberment of corpses and the S-Bahn train murders. These types of crime are still prevalent in today’s society; you usually hear about a body being dismembered on the news every couple of months or so. However, during this period, the government was trying to fight a World War against strong foreign nations, while keeping their citizens safe at home.
The police force had a serial killer on its hands in the case of the S-Bahn murders. Paul Ogorzow was the man who committed thirty-one sexual assaults, eight murders, and six attempted murders during his blackout spree of crime. I found this extremely interesting because I find it hard to believe that someone using the same tactics in a limited number of locations can get away for so long without being caught. I understand that the government has more pressing concerns against its foreign enemies, but they should have focused more emphasis on limiting the crime rate during the Second World War.
The government eventually increased its blackout regulations, but to no avail since radar was coming into play. Enemy pilots would be able to detect what was below, even with the blackout in place. Thus, technology played a major role in the outcome of World War II.