Berlin Wall

The Berlin Wall (German: Die Berliner Mauer) was a long barrier separating West Berlin from East Berlin and the surrounding territory of East Germany. The East German authorities called it the ?antifaschistischer Schutzwall? (Anti-Fascist Protection Wall). Its purpose was to restrict access between West Berlin and East Germany. It was built in 1961 and fortified over the years, but was opened to unrestricted transit on November 9, 1989 and subsequently almost entirely demolished.

Background

See main article: History of Berlin

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Germany's capital, Berlin, was deep within the area which Allied war planners expected to be overrun by the Soviet army during the closing months of World War II. As the capital, the city was specially divided by the Allies into four sectors, one for each, although Berlin was completely surrounded on all sides by the Soviet sector of Germany. The Soviet Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France each had a portion of the city under their control.

Related Topics:
Berlin - Soviet - World War II - Soviet Union - United States - United Kingdom - France

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The city was initially governed jointly by a commission of all four occupying armies, with leadership rotating on a monthly basis. As the early phases of the Cold War unfolded, tensions between the Soviets and the western allies escalated. Conflict over a currency reform in 1948 prompted the Berlin Blockade by the Soviet Union and led to the Berlin Airlift by the Western Allies. The Soviets lifted the ineffective blockade the next year.

Related Topics:
Cold War - Currency reform - 1948 - Berlin Blockade - Berlin Airlift

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After 1949, the three sectors controlled by the United States, Britain and France (West Berlin), although nominally still under joint four-power Allied sovereignty, were in effect an exclave of West Germany, completely surrounded by East Germany. West Berlin's precarious position was a key factor in the decision to make Bonn the seat of government of West Germany in preference to either West Berlin or Frankfurt.

Related Topics:
1949 - West Berlin - Exclave - West Germany - Bonn - Frankfurt

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Initially the citizens of Berlin were allowed to move freely among all the sectors. However, as the Cold War developed, movement became restricted. The border between East and West Germany proper was closed in 1952, and only in Berlin did the border remain open. The border between East and West Berlin was temporarily sealed on June 17, 1953 during the June 17 Uprising. Around 2.5 million East Germans crossed into the West between 1949 and 1961; after 1952 this happened almost exclusively via West Berlin. The majority of professionally skilled workers were already leaving the east (for example, on one day the entire Mathematics Department of the University of Leipzig defected). Furthermore, many West Berliners travelled into East Berlin to do their shopping at state-subsidized stores, where prices for foodstuffs were much lower than in West Berlin. This drain of labour and economic output threatened East Germany with economic collapse. This had ramifications for the whole Communist bloc and particularly the Soviet Union, because East Germany's economy was being subsidized by the Soviet government.

Related Topics:
Cold War - 1952 - June 17 - 1953 - June 17 Uprising - 1961 - University of Leipzig

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