40th Anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.  

In 1945, the Nazis surrendered Berlin at the end of World War II.  Berlin, like the rest of Germany, was divided into four zones, which were controlled by the United States, Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union.  The zones controlled by the U.S., Great Britain, and France became capitalist and democratic, while the fourth zone, controlled by the Soviet Union, became a communist dictatorship.  Originally, people could pass freely through the different zones.  This changed, however, as more people left the communist areas for the capitalist areas.

On August 13, 1961 at 2 a.m., a barbed wire was put up between East Berlin and West Berlin.  Two days later, the barbed wire would be replaced with concrete slabs.  The wall would ultimately be 96 miles long and 12 feet high.  Many attempt to escape to West Berlin; many are killed during the attempts.  The wall not only separated the East Berliners from freedom; in many cases, it separated them from their families.  

Finally, on November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall is opened.  

For more information, check out the Smithsonian Institution's Newseum web site:

http://www.newseum.org/berlinwall/

Sonnet Erin Brown
Head of Federal Documents
Reference & Instruction Librarian
Subject Specialist: Legal Research, Political Science
Earth & Environmental Sciences, Engineering, Urban Studies