Introduction to the Berlin Wall

Modern history has witnessed a dramatic construction of the Berlin Wall in the early year of 1961. Built during the cold war, Berlin Wall represented physically and politically division as it separated East Berlin from West Berlin. In this article, the factors that led to construction of the Berlin Wall and its effects on the people and the global society.

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Following World War II, Germany was divided into four occupied zones controlled by the victorious Allied powers: The power four included the United States, Great Britain, France and finally the Soviet Union. The capital city for this period was Berlin also divided circumferentially into four sections despite it was in the East Germany which was dominated by Soviet. With relations between the Soviet Union and the other allied powers souring there was conflict on who was to control Berlin.

The Rise of the Iron Curtain

The post World War II Europe was divided believe from the logic of ideology that predominated the world then. While the Soviet Union itself signed up for communism and some of the states in Eastern Europe were under Soviet influence, the west Europe embraced capitalist influence from United States. This divide got referred to as the ‘Iron Curtain’, which provided a definition of the division between East and west.

The Feud Over Berlin

When the US and the Soviet Union became ideological foes, the city of Berlin was a flashpoint of conflict. It is located deep into East Germany but was controlled by Allies; hence, many residents of East Berlin flocked to West Berlin especially in search of little freedom as lives was more bearable in the west. This in a way by the Soviet Union led to a blockade by east Germany in 1948 with the aim of forcing the allies out of West Berlin.

Considerable information about the construction of the Berlin Wall is found in a number of articles.

On August 13, 1961, the Soviet backed GDR started building the barrier known as the Berlin Wall. In fact, its formal name translated as the “Antifascist Protection Rampart” using the tales that it was an institution guarding the East German citizens from the fascist tendencies of the western states. But the real intentions of the construction were actually in an effort to halt the people from fleeing East Berlin to West Berlin, or in other words; to put an end to the brain drain, as well as to maintain the authority of the Eastern regime.

The Wall’s Structure

The Berlin Wall was just over 96 miles (155 kilometers) long and used concrete walls, watchtowers, barbed wire, trenches for vehicles and a deserted space aptly named the “death strip.” The wall surrounded West Berlin which absolutely separated it from rest of East Germany. It was an imposing physical structure with soldiers on guard Jacobsen said they had been instructed to shoot anyone who tried to cross.

Impact on Berliners

Soon the construction of the Berlin wall impacted the lives of people in Berlin. Marriages were dissolved; the life-long friends lost each other the very next day. Getting into West was a problem and so was communicating and visiting relatives in West Berlin for most East Berliners. The wall was symbolic of oppression and persons using the wall became a reminder of the divided nation.

The Fall of the Wall

Some members of the of the this generation may be too young to comprehend the historical significance of the Berlin Wall which exisited for 28 years and symbolized one of the most bitter time in German and world history. Yet, with pressure and actions of different epochs, political climate shift and pressure from normal people and global society, the GDR permitted freedom of movement across the border on November 9, 1989. Large numbers of easterners used border crossings and walls, while people rejoiced on the east and west sides of the barrier. It was this event which was the first step towards the beginning of the of the setting up of end of the Cold War.

Legacy of the Berlin Wall

The breaking of the Berlin wall meant division of Germany but also heralded the break up of the Soviet Union as well as ending of the cold war. The wall has become a symbol that carries ideas like freedom, division and people striving against the odds, when they are united.

Conclusion

They are the event in history that symbolizes such turmoil between the citizen and governments through construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961. Finally, as the material construction illustrating the existence of the Iron Curtain, the wall was meant to keep the East Berliners from escaping to the West, but what it also symbolised was oppression and the soul’s struggle for liberty. It also helps to remember that the experience of the division will eventually be defeated by the unity experience, which is already a fact that happened with the fall of the wall.