The demoralization of the Wall in Berlin in 1989 is one of the key posts and events that changed the world. This wall elongated about twenty-nine years was a physical as well as political barrier which separated East and West Berlin pulled the event into the wider canvas of Cold War between the Soviet Union and United States of America.

The Construction of the Berlin Wall

The actualization of this social barrier started on 13th August 1961, after the East German government built the Berlin wall with a motive of preventing anyone from escaping to west Germany and democratic west Berlin. The wall was of concrete and barbed wire on the top and surrounded by armed soldiers.

Since its construction, the wall developed into a circuit of barriers, watch towers, anti vehicle tracks and the infamous “death strip” with mined areas devoid of vegetation and any features conducive to escape attempts.

The Impact on Berliners

The division greatly affected the society specifically the people of Berlin in a very negative way. People were evicted from the homes, jobs were lost, people became jailed, and they could not easily move inside a city freely. These were still however clear scars that constantly symbolized the wall separating East from West, physically and metaphorically.

The Political Context: The Cold War

The Berlin Wall was a symbol of the cold war between the two world superpowers of that time; the American and the Soviet Union. This fight was termed the Cold War and mainly involved political showdown, military competition and, difference in world-view between the capitalist bloc and the communism bloc.

The division of Berlin was a direct result of World War II, with the city being divided into four sectors controlled by the Allied powers: the four major powers in the post – Second World War – the United States, the United Kingdom, France and the Soviet Union. The citizens of the city were also taken over by this little war that was occurring between them.

The Wall’s Symbolism

The Berlin Wall was a concrete reason for the division of Berlin into two halves since 1961 although it also signified much more – the battle between the democracies and communisms. It turned into the symbol of freedom lacking and restrictions that the Eastern Bloc countries had placed on their citizens.

It also established the prosperity of the West Germany in both the economic sector and in liberal freedom for the citizens thus underlining the impatience of East Germans in order to escape east into west Germany.

The Fall of the Berlin Wall

From the all these causes of the fall of the Berlin Wall, it can be concluded that they are as follows; Political Reforms in the Soviet Union Anti-government protests in East Germany Change in international Relations.

In 1985 Mikhail Gorbachev, the mastermind of the Soviet Union, initiated two policies that prolonged the life of the collapsing superpower; glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring) to finally energize the ailing Soviet economy. These reforms overheated pressure for change in other countries of the Eastern Bloc including East Germany.

The Role of Protests

It was early 1989 that mass demonstrations begin across East Germany for liberalisation and more freedom. Such protests – and more impressively, the non-violent march in Leipzig – created pressure on the East German leadership to act.

To curb tension and cool the situation, on November 9, 1989 the East Germany government gave a statement that people could cross the border. This announcement brought out passionate celebration where thousands of East Germans flocked to the wall, crossed the border through check points, reunite with their loved ones in the west.

The Aftermath

The revolution which occurred when the Berlin Wall fell was tremendous. It paved way to the reunification of East and West Germany which actually happened on the 3 rd of October 1990. The event was also followed by the break up of Soviet Union and the end of the cold war.

The dramatic removal of the Berlin Wall is the most memorable indication of the contribution of people and other actions to history. It symbolizes victory of freedom and democracy over dictatorship and partion. Now some of the pieces of that wall remain intact and now there are structures which are memorials to show people that the world can be a better place if unification is achieved.

Conclusion

Most people remember the event where the Wall of Berlin was torn down: October 1989 and September 1990 represented one of the greatest shifts on the planet and a unified, globalized world for many. When it happened it was regarded as a triumph of democracy and freedom; it was also the triumph of the spirit of man.