Hitler's abandoned Olympic Village is a decaying concrete wasteland

Wikimedia Commons

The 1936 Berlin Olympics are shrouded in myth and tragedy.

Just as Adolf Hitler was rising to power, the International Olympic Committee granted the German capital the right to host in 1931. Banners bearing the swastika soon hung beside the iconic Olympic flag.

Today, the 1936 Olympic Village, located in Elstal, Wustermark, on the edge of Berlin, remains, but it is in ruins. Photographer Sylvain Margaine visited for his book, "Forbidden Places: Exploring our abandoned heritage," and website Forbidden-Places.net.

With permission, we've published a selection of his photos here.

In 1931, Berlin won the right to host the 1936 Summer Games. The city threw all available resources behind an extravagant village, erecting 145 buildings and a 120,000-seat stadium.

Aileen Meagher/Wikimedia Commons

As construction of the Olympic Village ramped up, so did the Nazis' reign. The newly passed Nuremberg Laws marginalized Jews and stripped them of most political rights.

AP

Source: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Here we see Hitler, center, and two aides entering the Olympic Village for an inspection. The gateway inscription reads, "To the Youth of the World."

AP

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