The faded brick of the buildings whispers tales. This is Takuplatz in Cologne. It’s a small triangular space nestled in Neuehrenfeld. It’s part of the Ehrenfeld historical path. A plaque marks its significance.
The Takuplatz wasn’t always a quiet square. Once a tram turning loop occupied its heart. Rows of old Robinia trees lined the tracks. The loop is gone now. The tracks were removed in February 2008. The half-circle shape remains.
A flat windowless building sits here. It houses RheinEnergie’s energy distribution equipment. A familiar kiosk stands nearby. Since the late 1990s the center is a pétanque court. The Ehrenfelder Boule Club and the Boulogne Boyz play regularly. Part of the area is used for parking.
Four-story apartment buildings surround Takuplatz. A housing cooperative built them at the start of the 20th century. The first three houses on Takustraße stand out. Their original brick facades are more elaborate and colorful than the rest.
The names Takuplatz and Takustraße are connected to the Boxer Rebellion. This was a 1900 Chinese uprising against foreign powers. The German gunboat Iltis under Captain Lans attacked the Taku Forts. Local people call the area the Chinese Quarter.
The names were chosen in 1913. This was when the Ehrenfeld Workers’ Housing Cooperative built these houses. They remain under the ownership of their successors. The Ihrefelder Chinese carnival club was founded in 1971. Their members dress and paint themselves like Chinese people for carnival events.
The names caused controversy. Discussions on colonial ties started in late 2009. This happened in the Ehrenfeld district council. There were suggestions for more detailed explanatory plaques. Changing the names was also debated. A new sign explaining the names and German colonial policy was unveiled in August 2011. This ended the debate. In 2020 the discussion re-emerged. This was due to debates about racism in Germany.
A civil air-raid shelter stood at the square’s center during World War II. Its core remains below Takuplatz. Demolishing the concrete would have been too costly. Despite the devastating effects of Allied bombing in Cologne. The houses at Takuplatz only suffered damage not destruction.
A Bundist youth group met here in 1942. Such groups were banned by the Nazis. The Neuehrenfeld group clashed with Nazis. They suffered arrests and mistreatment by the Gestapo.
Iltisstraße is one of Neuehrenfeld’s busiest roads. It serves many residential streets. It also connects Bickendorf/Ossendorf and Neuehrenfeld/Ehrenfeld. Takustraße and Takuplatz have less traffic. A speed limit of 30 km/h keeps it calm.
Tram lines to Neuehrenfeld and Ossendorf used Iltisstraße from 1926. Takuplatz got a stop and a loop around the square. From 1958 to 1961. And in the early 1970s line 13 used it as a terminus. Line 5 used it as a stop on demand. Line 13 was rerouted in 1974. The loop was used for special runs until 2004. It was then decommissioned.
Line 5 used the Iltisstraße stop until mid-July 2010. Temporary platforms were built in 2004. The stop was closed for a new one at Lenauplatz in December 2010.
The square wasn’t served by buses. In the 1960s it was the terminus for line 37. This line went to the Ford factories.
On January 8 1975. Two line 5 trams collided on Iltisstraße. A wrongly set switch caused the accident. Seven people were seriously injured. Fourteen suffered minor injuries.
This is Takuplatz. A small square with a big history. A history woven with trams and war. With community and controversy. A place of quiet now. It echoes with the sounds of the past.