# Horst Plischke (1939–1962)

> Horst Plischke, a 23-year-old from Potsdam, drowned on 19 November 1962 while trying to swim across the Havel north of the Glienicker Bridge to West Berlin; his body was found in the Jungfernsee four months later.

- Born: 12 July 1939
- Died: 19 November 1962
- Age at death: 23
- Cause of death: Drowned
- Circumstances: Died trying to escape
- Place and circumstances as recorded: In the Havel River north of the Glienicker Bridge; On the outer ring between Potsdam and Berlin-Zehlendorf
- Map position (approximate): 52.42555, 13.07525
- Area: outer ring between West Berlin and the GDR
- Web page: https://victimsofthewall.com/victims/plischke-horst/

> Note on the sources: The sources disagree on his place of birth. The German biography gives Braunau, the English version of the same biography gives Bernau.

## Story

Horst Plischke was born on 12 July 1939 and lived in Potsdam. No archive documents or contemporary witnesses have yet been found that tell us who he was or why he wanted to leave. His identity card and a call-up notice for military service were later found on his body.

In the early hours of 19 November 1962 he went into the Havel north of the Glienicker Bridge, intending to swim to the West Berlin bank. Border soldiers noticed him at around 3:30 a.m. According to the West Berlin press, several shots were fired, and the water and the eastern shore of the Jungfernsee were then searched, continuing into the next day. He was not found.

At about 6:45 a.m. on 10 March 1963 border soldiers found the body of a young man in the Jungfernsee; it had come to the surface when the water thawed. The East German authorities concluded that it was the swimmer of 19 November, and that he had drowned without being hit by any of the guards' bullets.

Throughout the East German years the West knew nothing of his fate; his death was registered nowhere and his name appeared on no list of victims. Only in November 1994 did investigators find border troop records of his escape attempt and the recovery of his body. Further enquiries confirmed that he had drowned rather than been shot; the border guards involved could therefore not be prosecuted, and the Berlin public prosecutor's office discontinued its investigation on 3 May 1995.

## Sources

1. Christine Brecht, “Horst Plischke”, biography in Chronik der Mauer, Federal Agency for Civic Education, Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam and Deutschlandradio. Accessed 23 September 2026. https://www.chronik-der-mauer.de/en/victims/180506/plischke-horst
2. German version of the same biography. Accessed 23 September 2026. https://www.chronik-der-mauer.de/todesopfer/171436/plischke-horst
3. Hans-Hermann Hertle and Maria Nooke (eds.), The Victims at the Berlin Wall, 1961–1989: A Biographical Handbook. Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam and Berlin Wall Foundation, Berlin 2011.
4. Hans-Hermann Hertle and Maria Nooke, “140 Victims at the Berlin Wall, 1961–1989” (list), Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam and Berlin Wall Foundation, August 2017. https://www.chronik-der-mauer.de/system/files/dokument_pdf/2017_08_08_140%20Victims_at_the_Wall_List_Internet_engl_FINAL.pdf
5. Hans-Hermann Hertle and Maria Nooke, “The Victims at the Berlin Wall, 1961–1989: Findings of a Research Project”, August 2017. https://www.chronik-der-mauer.de/system/files/dokument_pdf/2017_08_08_Hertle_Nooke_140_Victims_Berlin_Wall_FINAL_0.pdf

This profile is a summary written for this site; every fact in it is taken from source 1.

Cite as: “Horst Plischke”, Victims of the Berlin Wall, Berlin Experiences. https://victimsofthewall.com/victims/plischke-horst/