An Introduction to the Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall, one of the most iconic symbols of the Cold War era, was a physical barrier that divided Berlin, the capital city of Germany, from 1961 to 1989. It was built by the German Democratic Republic (GDR), commonly known as East Germany, in an effort to prevent its citizens from fleeing to West Germany. This monumental wall had a significant impact on the lives of people living in both East and West Berlin, and its construction remains a subject of great historical interest.
The Builders of the Berlin Wall
Creation and building of the Berlin Wall were performed by the government of the GDR or by the Socialist Unity Party of Germany. However, it must be pointed out that though the GDR government headed building process, it was built by several organisations such as the Ministry for State Security of the GDR (Stasi), the German People’s Police and the National People’s Army.
These organizations collaborated in constructing the material barrier that would circumvent slightly over 96 miles around West Berlin. The wall was initially built to stop people from the East Germany from crossing over to the West Germany – basically a wall to contain the people. Beside the wall, there was also what is known as the “death strip”, full of fences, watchtowers and minefield to ensure that even if the fence was climbed over, no one could escape the barrier.
The Berlin Wall: Its Construction
Construction of the Berlin Wall was a closely guarded secret up to its construction as plans were kept among the East German government. Construction started on the night of 12th August of the same year. The East German government was also able to draw massive workforce from laborers, soldiers and the ordinary socialist citizen who volunteered in this Ramsau construction. They more or less constructed a wall with barbed wire, concrete slabs other necessities and in the shortest time possible, the city was split by a wall.
At the beginning of construction, a relatively flimsy barrier of barbed wire was constructed and this was replaced by a more permanent solid concrete wall as construction reached the later stages. The structure in the end developed into a high, huge wall with different additional solutions, which made it possible to increase its height by 3.6 meters (12 feet) and prevent prisoners from escaping.
The Impact of the Berlin Wall
The construction of the Berlin Wall has many effects on the people of Berlin and other people in the world. People found themselves hastily split across the border; some who were in East Berlin lost their friends and families in the West. It became an illustrated representation of the Iron curtain – the barrier between the East – home to communism and the Soviet Union and the West – the home to democracy and freedom.
The existence in East as well as West Berlin changed due to this partition. To the people of East Berlin, the wall was a symbol of oppressive limitation, denied opportunity of living well, and the ever watching eyes of the Stasi. Within West Berlin, it served as a slow, harsh daily symbol of the barrier between democracy and communism and, simultaneously, the concrete hope for German unity.
The Fall of the Berlin Wall
It took more than 27 years and it crumbled on 9 th of November 1989 to eclipse the great Berlin Wall . The fall of the wall was due to this; the people peacefully demanding for change, political internal changes in the Soviet Union and the populace in East Germany demanding the freedom to live as they wished.
The development of the wall was increasingly met with excitement, and when the wall came down people witnessing the reunification of East and West Germans with one common freedom to celebrate were breathtaking. The breakdown of the Berlin Wall signified the correlatively dramatic decline of the cold war thus giving way for the Deutschland’s reunion on 3rd October 1990.
Conclusion
The Berlin Wall stands as a powerful symbol of the deep divisions and struggles faced by the people of Germany during the Cold War era. It was built by the German Democratic Republic, under the control of the Socialist Unity Party, with the purpose of restricting movement and preventing East Germans from seeking a better life in the West. However, its construction and eventual fall also serve as a reminder of the indomitable human spirit and the desire for freedom and unity.
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