Introduction
As a first introduction to the Cold War, here is our complete Berlin guide. The Cold War is short for a period of geopolitical tension from 1947 to 1991 where the United States was in conflict with the USSR. This conflict became one of the main battlegrounds in Berlin, capital of Germany. The rest of this article will delve into the major periods that make up this eventful history, the divided city with the famous Berlin Wall in the middle used as a symbol of the times.
The Divided City
After World War II, Germany was divided into four occupation zones controlled by the Allies: the Soviet Union, the United States, Great Britain and France. Deep in the Soviet controlled zone, Berlin was also divided into four sectors. Complete separation of the East and the West Berlin was the result of the tension between the Allies and Soviet Union.
It remained three separate areas: West Berlin, a democratic enclave set in the Eastern Bloc, and East Berlin, the capital of East Germany, the former German Democratic Republic, which was a Soviet territory. And so Berlin was — truly divided from its east by stark differences in political ideologies, and in living standards.
The Berlin Wall
Its construction, on August 13, 1961, as a physical barrier to prevent escape to the West of East Berliners, commenced on that date. It was 155 kilometers (96 miles) across the city, intended to stop the exodus of East German citizens into West Germany, looking for political asylum or simply freedom and opportunities for economic gain.
The German part of it was forged to look as fortified and heavily armed as possible, ie. guard towers, barbed wire, ‘no man’s land’ the ‘death strip’ There were a handful of escape attempts and lives were spilled as well by those trying to cut across the wall.
It was a perfect representation of the Iron Curtain and that which divided the Western and Eastern blocs. A symbol of the Cold War, it stood until its fall Nov. 9, 1989.
Key Events
A number of important Cold War events and confrontation took place in Berlin. Here are some key events:
1948-1949 Berlin Blockade and Airlift: In 1948–49, hoping to force the Western powers to give up West Berlin, the Soviet Union blockaded the sector from the rest of the country. The United States and its allies responded by launching an airlift to feed, fuel and otherwise feed up West Berlin.
1961 Checkpoint Charlie Standoff: Just at the height of tensions, American and Soviet tanks stood eyeball to eyeball at Checkpoint Charlie, one of the crossing points between East and West Berlin. Without violence, the crisis was brought to an end.
1987 Ronald Reagan’s “Tear down this wall” Speech: In that year, U.S. President Ronald Reagan spoke a powerful speech at the Brandenburg Gate, urging that the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev remove the Berlin Wall. And his was remembered as an iconic moment by many.
1989 Fall of the Berlin Wall: The pressure from the population and the political change in the Soviet Union finally pushed the border from East to West Germany open on November 9, 1989, and then came down the Berlin Wall.
Legacy and Reunification
The Cold War came to a head when the Berlin wall fell as the beginning of the end of the Berlin wall and Germany reuniting. On October 3, 1990, the democratic nation of East and West Germany was reunited.
During Cold War times Berlin people were divided again and again, they were repressed, they suffered — and it is a reminder of revenge of the Cold war and human ability to hunt freedom.
Conclusion
Berlin was a defining period of the twentieth century during which time the Cold War separated the city. Cold War Berlin was characterized by political divides, military confrontations and the construction and collapse of the Berlin Wall. The city of Berlin stood as the microcosm of global tensions between the superpower Washington and its Moscow. Today Berlin is a symbol of unity and hardness, the victory over the division of freedom.