Charlotte von Mahlsdorf

Charlotte von Mahlsdorf
Berlin Gay Pride Parade, 1994
Born(1928-03-18)18 March 1928
Berlin-Mahlsdorf, Germany
Died30 April 2002(2002-04-30) (aged 74)
Berlin, Germany

Charlotte von Mahlsdorf (18 March 1928 – 30 April 2002) was a well-known trans woman in East Germany and founded the Gründerzeit Museum in Berlin-Mahlsdorf. Later she became a LGBT-icon in Germany because of Rosa von Praunheim's biopic I Am My Own Woman (1992).[1]

When a local mansion was due for demolition, von Mahlsdorf was allowed to live there, and its contents became the basis for her collection of everyday household items from the Gründerzeit period (c. 1870s). The museum became a popular meeting-point for East Berlin’s gay community, to the disapproval of the East German regime (Stasi).

  1. ^ "Ich bin meine eigene Frau". cinema.de. Retrieved 24 February 2024.