Between 1961 and 1989, the Berlin Wall was known as a barrier between west Berlin and east Germany. The Berlin Wall was symbolic for the division between democracy and communism during the Cold War. Thus, the Berlin Wall served as a barrier for twenty eight years keeping east Germans from fleeing to the west. At the end of the World War II, Allied powers divided and conquered Germany into four different areas. Each area was occupied by either the United States, France, Great Britain, or the Soviet Union, and the same happened to Germany’s capital city, Berlin. The association between the Soviet Union and the other three allied powers fell through and the civilized affair with Germany quickly turned aggressive and competitive. This new relationship between the Allied powers, in 1949, is what drove Germany into West versus East; democracy versus communism. This West versus East division of Germany became official when the three zones occupied by Great Britain, France and the United states all combined to form West Germany. The West was known as the Federal Republic of Germany. Hence, the Soviet Union proceeded to form the East Germany and thus, the East side was known as the German Democratic Republic. This same division of West and East proceeded to occur in Berlin. The city of Berlin was established inside the Soviet Zone of occupation, so West Berlin ended up becoming an island of democracy within Communist East Germany.
Shortly after the war, living conditions in West and East Germany became sharply different. With the reinforcement and guidance of its commanding powers, West Germany created a capitalist society thus, causing them to experience a fast economic growth. This rapid economic growth became known as the “ economic miracle.” The hard working individuals residing in West Germany, were able to buy gadgets, live well, buy appliances, and travel however, in East Germany it was not the same story. East Germany had become the complete opposite of the West. When the East became its own country, it was under the influence of the Soviet Union, thus a communist economy came about restricting individual freedoms.
Late 1950’s the many people living in East Germany wanted to leave. The living conditions of East Germany became quite unbearable. Many individuals packed their belongings and headed to West Berlin. However, for some individuals it wasn’t as easy as packing up and leaving. Some individuals unfortunately would be stopped on their way. Nonetheless, hundreds of thousands of individuals made it across the border. In the early 1960’s, East Germany was quickly losing it’s population, as well as its labor force. The East Germans had easy access to the West, thus forcing the obvious solution of putting up a barricade; a wall separating the sides and preventing from crossing over the border.
The wall was built from night to day. No one had any idea how quickly the wall would be put up. The night of August 12th 1961, soldiers and...