Kharkiv in 1942: Rare WWII Color Photos Under German Occupation
A rare series of color photographs of Kharkiv, Ukraine during World War II under German occupation (spring–summer 1942). The pictures were taken by German military photographer Johannes Hähle (Propagandakompanie 637, 6th Army) on Agfacolor color film.
Photo 1. Central Market (“Blagbaz”): wooden market pavilions and a crowd of local residents.
These photographs capture Kharkiv in the period between the initial fighting of autumn 1941 and the even more devastating battles for the city in February–March and August 1943. Many central buildings already stand gutted by fire and the bridges across the Lopan River lie in ruins, yet much of the pre-war cityscape is still recognizable. Hähle kept several rolls of his color film hidden from the propaganda authorities; after he was killed in Normandy in June 1944, his archive was recovered by US troops and only published decades later.
Below is the complete set of 29 color photographs with identified locations across Kharkiv.
Photo 2. 1 Sumska Street (corner of Teveleva / Constitution Square): the former Georges Borman store (“Gastronom No. 2”), converted into a German soldiers’ club with a “Willkommen” banner.
Photo 3. Shop window on Sumska Street: a passerby looks at a framed portrait of Hitler while young boys sit on the curb.
Photo 4. Kharkiv residents looking at a display window with German propaganda posters in Ukrainian.
Photo 5. Ruins of the “Krasnaya” Hotel (formerly “Metropol”) on Teveleva Square (now Constitution Square), with women pulling a handcart past the rubble.
Photo 6. A queue of residents outside “Gastronom No. 2” at the corner of Sumska Street and Teveleva Square.
Photo 7. Sumska Street: signs for the “Rembrandt” photo studio (advertising portraits for Wehrmacht soldiers), a café, and street flower sellers.
Photo 8. Busy pedestrian traffic across the wooden deck of a bridge over the Lopan River, with homeless children sitting in the foreground.
Photo 9. Station Square outside the Southern Railway Station (Pivdennyi Vokzal): the Southern Railway headquarters and Main Post Office, with knocked-out Soviet T-26 tanks and a BA-10 armored car in the foreground.
Photo 10. British Mk.V tank monument on Teveleva (Constitution) Square, with the Historical Museum and Pokrovsky Monastery bell tower in the background.
Photo 11. Beginning of Sverdlova Street (now Poltavskyi Shliakh): view from the Lopan bridge with a surviving streetcar on the tracks and a bombed-out corner building on the left.
Photo 12. Panorama of the old city center showing war-damaged blocks, with the Pokrovsky Cathedral and the Uspensky (Dormition) Cathedral bell tower in the distance.
Photo 13. The Lopan River and the blown-up bridge: residents crossing the river by boat against the backdrop of the Annunciation (Blagoveshchensky) Cathedral and the Uspensky bell tower.
Photo 14. The Derzhprom (Gosprom / State Industry Building) on Dzerzhinsky Square (now Freedom Square) — a landmark of 1920s Constructivist architecture.
Photo 15. Rooftop view over burned-out buildings along Universytetska Street toward the domes of Pokrovsky Monastery, with Gosprom visible on the far horizon.
Photo 16. A young boy begging with a tin mug on a street in occupied Kharkiv.
Photo 17. Open-air flea market at the Central Market (“Blagbaz”), with the domes of the Annunciation Cathedral on the left and the Uspensky bell tower on the right.
Photo 18. Street vendors and pedestrians on Sverdlova Street (Poltavskyi Shliakh) near the Lopan Bridge.
Photo 19. Teveleva Square (now Constitution Square): the damaged Palace of Labor on the left and former bank buildings and City Council on the right.
Photo 20. Aerial view of Dzerzhinsky Square (now Freedom Square) from the roof of Gosprom: the “International” (“Kharkiv”) Hotel on the left and the former Central Committee building (now Regional Administration) on the right.
Photo 21. A street shoeshiner at work inside his wooden booth.
Photo 22. View from the Lopan Bridge toward Universytetska Hill, Pokrovsky Monastery, and the Uspensky Cathedral bell tower.
Photo 23. Looking up Sverdlova Street (Poltavskyi Shliakh) toward the Southern Railway Station and Kholodna Hora: men pulling a heavy cart past German military road signs.
Photo 24. German soldiers gathered around a nighttime bonfire at a Luftwaffe airfield near Kharkiv, with Ju 52 and He 111 aircraft in the background.
Photo 25. A marching column led by an accordion player passing the Southern Railway headquarters on Station Square.
Photo 26. Luftwaffe aircrew standing by a Heinkel He 111 bomber at a Kharkiv airfield.
Photo 27. Teveleva (Constitution) Square: view along the City Council and former bank buildings toward the Uspensky Cathedral bell tower.
Photo 28. Aerial view of destroyed industrial buildings, with the silhouette of Gosprom rising on the center horizon.
Photo 29. Teveleva Square (now Constitution Square): view from the start of Sumska Street toward the Puppet Theater (former Volga-Kama Bank, designed by architect Alexei Beketov) and the Transport College; on the left is the corner where the famous Kharkiv “Thermometer” landmark was later installed.
Special thanks to our readers who helped identify the exact streets and landmarks in the comments. If you spot any additional historical details, feel free to share them below!