Some of you might remember watching on the news or listening to the radio about that November 9 of 1989, when thousands of people tore down the infamous Berlin Wall. Some of you might’ve learned about it in history class, but there’s probably a slight minority who hasn’t really heard about the fall of the wall, and that is because it’s one of the most important turning points in recent history.
For over a decade, the world saw its 200 kilometers of concrete as a symbol of oppression, while for others, it represented the holding up together of a once very strong regime. Its construction came at the peak of a world conflict that made the world paranoid of what promised to be an inevitable third world war, and its coming down represented the end of that possibility and the start of what we came to consider the modern world.
But going back to where we started, although most of us are aware of the implications of the Berlin Wall, many of us don’t fully understand how it came to exist or the violent situations that took place along it. So, to really understand the importance of the fall of the Berlin Wall, we really need to understand how it even came to exist. The timeline below shows the key moments in almost fifty years of history of the wall that divided not only a city, but also the world in two different sets of ideas.
1945:
Berlin is occupied
After the Red Army (USSR) captured the city of Berlin, thus putting an end to WWII, the four winners (the Allies: US, UK, France, and the USSR) divided the city in four sectors (the first three in the West and the latter in the East). This was decided after the Potsdam Agreement in which the government of Germany would be taken by the powers turning Berlin into their Allied Control Council. Little did they know, that eventually this division would end up separating the world into two and give rise to the Cold War.
The first problems appeared less than two years after the war was over, when the US, the UK, and France proposed a plan for the reconstruction of Europe and Germany. Stalin, the head of the USSR, was confident that France and the UK would eventually back off and that the US would be easy to deal with alone, so he decided not to support the proposal, since he had plans of turning Germany into one of his Eastern bloc countries.
1948-1949:
Berlin Blockade
After many failed attempts to negotiate with the Soviets over the reconstruction of Germany, and after seeing that they weren’t backing off as expected, Stalin decided to establish what would became known as the Berlin Blockade. Berlin belonged to the Eastern section of Germany, and Stalin saw this as an opportunity to push them away from the city and eventually take the entire city. His blockade prevented the Allies from transporting supplies to the western sectors. However, it didn’t work exactly as planned, since in response, the allies established an airlift to keep the city supplied.
This would be just one of the first conflicts between the two sides, and the one that would separate them for good. The blockade was lifted in 1949 and later that year the Soviets founded the German Democratic Republic (GDR) as an “independent” country controlled by the USSR. Just a couple months before the Allied powers had established the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), thus formally dividing the country.
1952:
The border between East and West Germany is closed
From 1949 to 1953, Germany experienced a massive migration of people moving from the East to the West. By 1952, over half a million East Germans had fled to the West easily because the border was open. One of the main reasons for this massive displacement was the growing economy in the West (that later on would be known as the “economic miracle” that lasted for twenty years) after the allies started their reconstruction program through the investment of capital and the creation of industries, while the East was sinking more and more into a crisis due to the state’s insistence on extracting and using the country as a source of resources (considered a payment for reparations after the war).
Long story short, by April 1, after Stalin had declared the issue to be intolerable, the GDR decided to close all borders with barbed wire in some of the most popular crossing spots and implemented a program to prevent people from leaving. This happened throughout all of the Eastern bloc, except for Berlin, where borders remained open, making the city a magnet for people to leave.
1957:
Leaving East Germany without permission becomes illegal
Since Berlin was still an open border, the flux of people from all over the Soviet Union kept growing. To put it into context, by this time, the number of people leaving the East from Berlin rose from 60 to 90% in just a matter of years. The GDR then implemented travel permits that were only authorized after an exhaustive investigation process, meaning that very few people were actually granted the permit, and thus, illegal immigration became a constant.
Now, one of the main reasons why Berlin remained an open border was because of the railway routes and traffic so important for the East, so moving from the East to the West was as easy as taking the subway. In 1951, the GDR started building new railway roads to avoid this problem, but it wouldn’t be finished until 1961. In the meantime, the government, with the help of the Stasi (the secret police), made it illegal to enter the West without formal permission. Those caught without a permit would be punished with prison or even exiled to Siberia.
1961:
Construction of the wall
Despite these harsh measures, people continued to flee, causing great problems for the state, not only in terms of migration, but also economically and socially. The Soviets soon realized they were experiencing what they called a “brain drain.” Most of the people that fled West were actually highly-educated individuals who saw in the West the chance to grow professionally. This left East Germany with an important loss that ended up representing about 9 billion dollars in today’s currency.
Despite concerns and doubts regarding increasing tensions with the US and the other powers, after a lot of thought (and after Kennedy’s declaration that the US wouldn’t actively oppose the building of a barrier), Berliners woke up on August 13th to the view of wired fences along the 156 km border between West Berlin and East Germany, plus 43 crossing the city.
Over the following years, wire would be replaced by concrete and other measures would be implemented, like pipes at the top to avoid climbing, spikes, guard dogs, land mines, 302 watchtowers, and 20 bunkers. In addition, they tore down everything within a 100-meter parallel range to give guards a clear sight. This came to be known as the “death strip” after guards were instructed to shoot anyone trying to cross.
1973:
East and West Berlin establish diplomatic ties
Relations between the West and the East became more and more problematic over the years. The West saw the wall (also known as the Iron Curtain) as a Soviet threat to freedom, while the GDR claimed it was a measure to protect their citizens from any possible western aggression. At the same time, for over a decade, people in West Berlin grew more and more scared of a possible Soviet occupation. After all, they were surrounded by the Soviets.
After a few years of negotiations, in 1972, both German states decided to have a more amicable relationship known as Ostpolitik. This evolved into what’s known as the Treaty Concerning the Basics of Relations between the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, or Basic Treaty. This document established mutual formal recognition of the other as a sovereign state for the first time since their creation. It was first signed by the GDR, and then the FRG, but it didn’t come into effect until 1973. Not only did it establish diplomatic relations between both German states, but it also allowed the GDR to form ties with other nations. Also, for the first time in almost thirty years, both nations were considered to be part of the UN.
May to September 1989:
Hungary opens its Austrian border
By 1989, people in several Soviet states had rebelled against the system, with Poland being the most representative of the time. After a series of protests, the Polish government finally agreed to hold the first free elections in sixty years, giving Solidarity (the labor union party) a massive success that eventually paved the way for other parties in the bloc to end the Communist regime.
That same year, as a result of the Revolutions of 1989 all over the bloc, the Hungarian and Austrian government agreed to open their borders and remove the wire fences that separated their countries. As a result, many East Germans traveled to Hungary to make their way to the East resulting in the biggest migration since the creation of the Wall.
October, 1989:
Public anti-government demonstrations
By October, political tensions rose in East Germany after they saw different nations rise against the Soviet regime. On October 4, four huge anti-government demonstrations took place in the GDR, and although the government was able to stop them, the spirits of the people were already lifted and they weren’t going to let the government discourage them again. By October 18th, General Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany, Erich Honecker was forced to resign. From then on, the demonstrations continued gathering more and more people and strength.
November 4, 1989:
East German Government resigns
Just one month after the first massive demonstrations, around a million East Germans organized an anti-communist demonstration in East Berlin’s main square. It had such an impact, that several important people of the government were forced to resign within days. After forty years of existence, the GDR’s government was basically overthrown by none other than its people.
November 9, 1989:
Government announces restriction-free passage through the wall
Five days after most government officials resigned, a GDR spokesman gave a conference in which he mistakenly announced that East Germans would be allowed to travel without any restrictions. Not only that, he added this would become effective as he was speaking. Naturally, the border guards weren’t prepared for what was coming, as thousands of citizens jumped over the wall to cross into West Berlin. Many parts of the wall were demolished by the people themselves in the iconic historical moment. Over the next few months, almost the whole wall would disappear, announcing the end of the Soviet Union.
October 3, 1990:
East and West Germany reunite
The official demolition of the wall started on June 13th, 1990. One month later, East Germany officially adopted West German currency, aiming for a reunification of the country, which happened with the formal dissolution of the East German government in October 3rd, 1990. The dissolution of the USSR came one year later, in December 1991, and the demolition of the wall was finally completed in 1992, thus closing a dark chapter in world history.
Read more:
The Ukrainian Genocide By The Hand Of The USSR No One Talks About
Pictures From The Soviet Punk Uprising You Never Knew Existed
From Russian Revolutionary To Frida Kahlo’s Lover, Who Was Trotsky And Why Was He Persecuted?
