Chess in the GDR and divided Berlin is a largely neglected topic in the literature, although it sometimes enjoyed state support similar to that of the USSR. The names of chess masters and notable events before and after the 1960 Leipzig Chess Olympiad are mostly known only to the older generation. This book tries to remedy that. FIDE Master Wolfgang Thormann (1949), brings 24 detailed biographical medallions of East Berlin chess masters of the time. Thormann knew all these players personally. The reader learns not only about their successes and biographies, but also about what chess life was like in real socialism at the time. Co-author and publisher Arno Nickel examines the question of how chess developed in the post-1945 destroyed Berlin and how the separation into East and West came about. He devotes a special chapter to the publishing house Sportverlag Berlin. 50 annotated games, results, summaries, name index, 77 diagrams, 101 bw and color photos. 2 pictures