The Berlin Wall existed for 28 years, from 1961 to 1989. With the defeat of the Nazis, in 1945, Berlin (former capital of the 3rd Reich, of Adolf Hitler), was divided into four zones of influence, respectively controlled by France, Great Britain, USA and USSR.
But after that, during the Cold War, all of germany ended up split between two countries, West and East Germany. The problem is that Berlin was all in communist territory. And nobody wanted to give up their pre-established areas of influence in a major city. Contrary to popular belief, therefore, the Berlin Wall did not separate the two Germanys themselves. It only symbolized this division, because it separated the same city, Berlin, which belonged to both “sides” of the Cold War.
Implemented overnight, the wall cut squares, avenues and even cemeteries in half. Its structure had phases: in the early years, they were barbed wire fences, evolving into concrete walls after 1965 and into the maximum security version, with towers and traps, from 1975 onwards.
During the entire existence of the barrier, residents on the western side had free access to the eastern side, but not the other way around… Until the Wall finally fell, in 1989.
It all started with a confused statement from the East German spokesman, which led to a huge crowd of people in front of the wall. Although the wall took months to come down completely, the images of the Germans destroying it with hammers and sledgehammers traveled the world, becoming a symbol of this historic moment.
From block to block: the fall step by step
Clumsy official statement brought down the border between East and West Germany
1. After the Cold War, the Soviet Union was weakened. The economy stagnated and nationalist movements called for the separation of the group. In addition, General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev began to make democratic reforms, establishing a new Congress and allowing the people to vote for the first time since 1917.
2. On November 9, 1989, in the face of pressure against the control of crossing the wall, the spokesman for East Germany, Günter Schabowski, said in an interview that the government would allow travel of the population to the West side. Asked when this change would take effect, he hinted that it was already in effect.
3. That was enough for the people on the east side to gather around the borders of the wall. Thousands of citizens gathered in front of the checkpoints and chanted “Open the gates!” Facing the crowd, the eastern guards didn’t know what to do. They entered the guardhouses and, in desperate phone calls, asked for instructions. But his superiors didn’t know how to act either.
4. Pressured, the guards yielded and opened the gates. Other than that, people began to come to the wall armed with shovels, sledgehammers, pickaxes and hammers to open clandestine passages and tear down the wall by force. On the western side, another mass of people shouted to let the east out.
5. What followed was a party. People reunited with friends and family in the gaps in the walls in a celebratory mood. The next day, the eastern crowd invaded western stores. Their “trabis” cars – the only model manufactured in East Germany – formed huge traffic jams.
6. The wall did not fall right away. In the following months, new crossings were opened by both the people and the government, and what remained was demolished between June and November 1990. On October 3, 1990, the two Germanys were united by law. On December 26, 1991, the Soviet Union was officially dissolved, giving rise to 15 separate countries.
The Wall in numbers
80 people died and 112 were injured trying to get over the wall over the years – and that’s the lowest estimate released. Thousands were imprisoned. Since the wall was raised, more than 70 tunnels and escape routes were built underground to make escapes possible. the little more than 1 km what was left of the wall was covered with graffiti by artists and, today, is maintained as a historical heritage of Germany.
SOURCES Sandro Zarpelão, professor, master, doctoral candidate in history and historian, and Flavia Bancher, author of the book The Fall of the Berlin Wall and the Presentification of History
QUESTION by reader Natan Lima, from Boituva, SP