...Erick Fimbo Jan Gane English 1050-028 November 15, 2013 The Fall of the Berlin Wall For twenty-eight years, the Berlin Wall separated friends, families, and a nation. Between 1961 and 1989, the Wall was one of the most striking and distinctive features of Berlin. The Berlin Wall was a border security installation built by the German Democratic Republic (GDR) on August 12, 1961. The Wall was to protect the GDR from aggressive acts by the west. In reality, the Wall functioned as a barrier to stem the huge migration of skilled laborers to West Berlin and the entire Western Germany. During the standing of this Wall, the people from East and West Berlin had no interaction with each other, and this brought pains and poverties in both sides of country because they depend on each other’s activities in order to survive. On the night of November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall, the most potent symbol of the Cold War division of Europe, eventually came down, and the fall of this wall was the peak point of the revolutionary changes within the country of Germany and those were involved. According to Ted Kelly article, “Politics, People and the Berlin Crisis: June-August, 1961”. After World War II in 1945, the Allies, who won the war, divided the country of Germany into four sections, each under the control of an ally. The countries who made up the Ally control were the United States, Great Britain, France, and Russia. The United States, British, and French sectors combined to form a democratic...
Words: 2232 - Pages: 9
...“The changes in East Germany are quite dramatic. None of us can give a prognosis. There is an enormous unrest among the population. Things will become incalculable if there are no reforms. My interest is not to see so many flee East Germany, because the consequences there would be catastrophic.” This shows that many of the ordinary people were fed up with the Soviet Union, especially Eastern Germans. Dieter Baumbach, an East German school principal described the fall of the Berlin Wall as: “Ever since I was 12, when the wall went up, the West had been a closed world. During the next few hours I kept switching between the East and West German channels, and it became more and more clear that the border was open. My wife came home at 10. She hadn't heard, and was astounded. It was then that we decided to try to visit my wife’s sister in West Berlin, whom she had been allowed to visit only once before.” This shows that many East Germans were in disbelief when the announcement came. Many citizens grew up with a divided Berlin, so they had not known anything different. With the signing of the Treaty on the Final Settlement (the Two-Plus-Four Treaty) on September 12, 1990, the Cold War officially ended. This treaty unified East and West Germany. After this,...
Words: 539 - Pages: 3
...The Fall of the Berlin Wall The Fall of the Berlin Wall is book on a popular symbol of communist oppression during the Cold War, that of the Berlin Wall erected in Eastern Germany in 1961. From the politics that motivated it construction to its eventual destruction, author William F. Buckley Jr. gives the readers a comprehensive overview of the history of the Berlin Wall, as well as the origins and end of the Cold War between Western and Eastern Powers. Author Buckley displays several strengths throughout this book. A particular strength that a reader may find is that this book is well researched and offers a detailed chronological account of the events that would lead to the wall being constructed to keep East Berliners from escaping to West Berlin. The book highlights and explains steps that would lead to the wall construction such as post World War II Russia imposing its form of government on its designated sectors of occupancy, or Walter Ulbricht’s, the ruler of Eastern Germany’s and a devoted communists desire to prevent any further...
Words: 657 - Pages: 3
...The Berlin Wall was built by the communist government of East Berlin in 1961. The wall separated the East Berlin and the West Berlin. It was built in order to prevent people from East Berlin to get out from East Berlin. The Berlin Wall started after the World War II when the country of Germany ended up dividing into two countries. East Germany became a communist country under the control of the Soviet Union and at the same time, West Germany was a democratic country and allied with Britain, France and the United States. Berlin was the capital of Germany. Even though it was located in the eastern of the country, the city was controlled by all the four dominant powers which is the Soviet Union, the United States, the Great Britain and France....
Words: 378 - Pages: 2
...and an almost neo-colonization after the fall of the Wall by West Germany. After the Wall came down, Germany embarked “on a nationbuilding process, integrating two radically different and inherently unequal geographical entities into one political, economic, and cultural system”. This was prompted by the new government’s sole focus on making a bid for Berlin to host the 2000 Summer Olympic Games. The city started to change physically as construction began in areas like Potsdamer Platz. East Berliners felt they could not influence the process at hand and must simply adapt to the current environment created by the new political decisions. Unemployment and competition in the open market increased for everyone, creating feelings of insecurity and inferiority for the unemployed and from some of the employed that feared losing their jobs. As those in East Berlin were unaccustomed to a free market economy, some people fell into depression and long-term instability. Now operating as a single and united Berlin, there was the need to eliminate the duplication of city services such as police, fire, and postal, as reunification rendered the separate systems redundant. These actions were duplicated in Berlin’s cultural sphere. During the Cold War Eastern and Western parts of the city competed for international recognition of their cultural facilities, as it was a direct representation and showcase of the success of each respective economy. When the Wall fell, there was an extraordinary density...
Words: 1148 - Pages: 5
...The Pulse of Europe 2009: 20 Years After the Fall of the Berlin Wall (Pew Research Center) End of Communism Cheered but Now with More Reservations Nearly two decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall, publics of former Iron Curtain countries generally look back approvingly at the collapse of communism. Majorities of people in most former Soviet republics and Eastern European countries endorse the emergence of multiparty systems and a free market economy. However, the initial widespread enthusiasm about these changes has dimmed in most of the countries surveyed; in some, support for democracy and capitalism has diminished markedly. In many nations, majorities or pluralities say that most people were better off under communism, and there is a widespread view that the business class and political leadership have benefited from the changes more than ordinary people. Nonetheless, self reported life satisfaction has risen significantly in these societies compared with nearly two decades ago when the Times Mirror Center1 first studied public opinion in the former Eastern bloc. The acceptance of — and appetite for — democracy is much less evident today among the publics of the former Soviet republics of Russia and Ukraine, who lived the longest under communism. In contrast, Eastern Europeans, especially the Czechs and those in the former East Germany, are more accepting of the economic and societal upheavals of the past two decades. East Germans, in particular, overwhelmingly approve...
Words: 2845 - Pages: 12
...HIST-410 | The Berlin Wall | [Type the document subtitle] | | Alina Nazar | 12/4/2014 | | The fall of the Berlin Wall has triggered much controversy and plays a major part in the shaping of the modern political ideology and beliefs. The specific date of the descent of the Berlin encasement wall was the 10th of November, 1989. The wall took 3 hours to fall and between 125-206 people died trying to cross the wall. There were many tourists participating who could hire axes to hit the wall and contribute to the atmosphere. The fall of the Berlin Wall occurred when the people of East Berlin had had enough. The fall of the Berlin Wall also marked the end of the Cold War and the beginning of a new life for the Germans. Border crossing points all along the wall were opened to anyone who wanted to cross on 9 November 1989 which ended the conclusion of an international press conference in East Berlin when greater freedom of travel was announced for people of the German Democratic Republic. The fall of the Berlin Wall was a key movement in the history of Europe as it was the symbol of the end of the Cold War. The European Union and NATO were able to expand in pace when Europe was no longer divided into East and West. The power in the world changed when the Cold War ended. A truce between the nuclear threats of two superpowers the USA and the Soviet Union was created as soon as the Berlin Wall fell also preventing both superpowers from dominating the world. Europe...
Words: 579 - Pages: 3
...Global Trade. This report depicts the sequences of Berlin Wall. The Berlin Wall, erected November 13, 1961, served to separate communist East Germany from Western influences. Intended to "protect" East Germans, the wall actually was erected to prevent them from leaving the country. The Wall finally came down August 13, 1989, reuniting families and symbolizing the end of the cold war was near. The initial plans for Allied occupation of Germany were prepared in 1944 in London by the European Advisory Commission. In this agreement, Germany would be divided into four occupational zones governed by Great Britain, the United States, France, and the Soviet Union. The city of Berlin, which would be in the Soviet occupational zone, would be divided among the four powers as well. By the time of the blockade, there was a major contrast between the East and West Berlin. West Berlin was a thriving democratic, capitalist city, while East Berlin was in drab poverty. Trying to escape the forced collectivization of goods and agriculture, numerous shortages, and a police state, many fled to West Berlin. To maintain the stability of the communist regime, the East German leaders felt that these floods of people had to be stopped. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1. Introduction…………………………………………………………..….3 1.1 Summary of the Berlin Wall…………………………………….……..3 1.2 Background…………………………………………………………...
Words: 1554 - Pages: 7
...Fall of the Wall Fall of the Wall The Berlin Wall was a physical division between West Berlin and East Germany from 1961 to 1989 and the symbolic boundary between democracy and Communism during the Cold War. After World War II, the Allied powers divided Germany into four zones, each occupied by the United States, Great Britain, France, or the Soviet Union. Berlin, Germany’s capital, was also divided. As the liaison between the Soviet Union and the other three Allied powers abruptly broke up, the new relationship turned Germany into West versus East, in other words, democracy versus Communism (Rosenberg, n.d.). The demolition of the Berlin Wall and the global market revolution that followed liberated millions of people, and two decades later the world has gained significantly from the democratic and economic incorporation. The destruction of the Berlin Wall is one of the most extraordinary political events of history. It set millions of people free and brought to an end a global conflict that threatened nuclear obliteration. For business, far reaching changes in the global economic atmosphere started at that time: The changeover to the market based economies in most Central and Eastern European countries created considerable opportunities for the markets, resources, supplies, and manufacturing. There was a large increase in cross-border trade and foreign direct investments. Almost simultaneously, the materialization of the digital revolution brought a reduction in...
Words: 452 - Pages: 2
...Berlin is Impact on European History The city of Berlin is central to twentieth century European History. It has been the grounds for many historic events that have shaped the way things are in Europe today both for good and bad reasons. Berlin played a significant role in European history though the sequence of events from 1945 to the late 1990`s that were end of World War Two, through the rise and fall of the Berlin wall, and the birth of the Eurozone. The events covered during this time all interlinked with each other and where the cause for what Europe looks like today. At the end of World War two the USA, France, Britain, and the Soviet Union gathered together to see how Europe should be divided after the war. After it was all divided it came out that the Soviet Union should get most of the countries that Nazi Germany controlled, which were the eastern part of Europe. The division gave East Germany to the capitalist states, and West Germany to the socialist, with Berlin also divided into the two sides. Berlin was on the western side claimed by the USSR, but the city was divided into east and west just like the country had. This division of the capital happened pretty much over night and many were separated from their families and friends. The USSR built the Berlin Wall that would separate all contact with the east side. This forced a Socialist way of living that in the long run created many conflicts of Socialism against Capitalism. The Berlin Wall was eventually torn...
Words: 1857 - Pages: 8
...The rise of the Berlin Wall physically began the morning of August 13th 1961, but the separation of East and West Germany began years before. The life span of the wall lasted until November 9th 1989, just a mere 28 years later. The purpose of the Berlin wall was to separate the East and the West sides of Germany. The result of WWII divided Germany into zones; those zones were given to Great Britain, the United States, France and the Soviet Union. The rise and the fall of the Berlin Wall were key moments in our global history, as it was a series of events that shaped a country. World War II was a success in conquering Germany; The Potsdam Agreement officially broke up Germany into 4 zones. The furthest South was the United States territory, the Southwest territory belonged to the French, the British were in control of the Northwest Territory and Soviets had the East. This division was eventually broken down into a division of the West and East Germany, the West part of Germany was called composed of the United States, France and Great Britain, and was also known as the Federal Republic of Germany. The East side of Germany was the Soviet Union’s portion after the Potsdam Agreement; this side was also known as the German Democratic Republic. The West side of the berlin wall was very different than the East. The west side was the one that sought after to live in by the people of the East side. After the war and the separation of Germany between the four countries West Germany...
Words: 2246 - Pages: 9
...The Division of Germany was tragic, yet necessary. Germany was split into east and west. On May 7,1945 Germany surrendered to the allied forces. The Berlin Walls construction started at midnight on August 12, 1961. The building of the wall was a disaster for Khrushchev. Stalin tried to negotiate with the East Germans, but did not sign the treaty. The soviets were not gentle and were not inclined to be gentle with anyone. It was more peaceful for the Germans than it ever was during the war for them. Some germans speak of regret that the Berlin Wall was not still standing. The allied forces divided Berlin at the end of 1945, creating a period of peace for Germany. At the end of the war Germany was split into East Germany and West Germany. The Germans surrendered on May 7, 1945. The allied forces decided that Germany had to much power. The allies decided that they could not give power back to Germany immediately, because the war might flare up again. At...
Words: 1075 - Pages: 5
...The Berlin Wall (1961–1989) ------------------------------------------------- (1) The reasons the Soviets and the East German government had for erecting the Berlin Wall. Many Germans fled East Germany after the Soviet Union got their hands on them and tried to make it a communist country. It was so easy for people to cross the East and West Germany border and the communists in East Germany did not want their people to keep leaving so they erected the Berlin Wall to keep in the Germans and practice communism even if it meant separating families and friends. (2) Discuss the Wall’s elaborate fortifications. East Germany tried to put up the Berlin Wall as quickly as possible so that the West would not realize what’s happening until it’s already finished being built. The wall was armed with barbed wires, a hundred tanks, and approximately ten thousand East Germany soldiers guarding it. (3) Relate what happened when the East Germans tried to escape across the wall. When East Germans tried to escape the Berlin Wall to go over to the West, they often got caught or died trying to escape. Those who were caught got interrogated thoroughly. Many people tried to swim to West Germany but usually die trying. Others tried to jump the border and was met with instant death when they hit the concrete floor. (4) Analyze and explain how the construction of the Wall raised Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. The Berlin Wall made communists look...
Words: 537 - Pages: 3
...“Tear Down This Wall!” In 1987, when Ronald Reagan arrived in Berlin, he arrived in a city and country divided. The Berlin Wall took center stage, dividing Berlin into two separate entities. West Berlin was run by the Allies, and East Germany was controlled by the Soviet Union. The political ideologies of these two also clashed, with East Germany practicing communism and West Germany being more democratic. Reagan, the President of the United States at that time, quickly realized that the situation involving the two countries was doing nothing but harm to both sides. In his “Speech at the Brandenburg Gate”, Reagan presents his theme that Germany would be unified and strong without the Berlin Wall, through use of metaphor and repetition. Reagan...
Words: 674 - Pages: 3
...History of the Berlin Wall Eastin Bartholio Modern History Dr. Mallon May 6, 2013 The construction of the Berlin Wall was an actual feature that split Berlin into two parts: East and West Berlin. East Berlin had a communistic ruling and West Berlin had a democratic ruling enabling the West to get stronger. When the wall fell it freed East Berlin allowing them to join together with their other half, West Berlin. The building of the wall physically separated Berlin making it weaker, but with the wall falling it allowed Berlin’s halves come together making their future much brighter. Even before the wall was built East and West Berlin were separated. They were separated because after WWII. Germany’s land was given up to the two superpowers: The Unites States of America and the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union got the east and the United States got the west. Giving part of Berlin to each of these superpowers caused separation because the U.S.A is democratic and the Soviet Union is not. As John F. Kennedy said, “There are many people in the world who really do not understand-or say they don’t-what is the great issue between the free world and the communist world. Let them come to Berlin!” Unfortunately when the land was given away it split Berlin in half creating their separation before it was physically separated. Yes, before the wall was built there was conflict between East and West Berlin, but at least the border between them was open to all people...
Words: 1502 - Pages: 7
