After World War II, Berlin became scarred by a bloody geo political fight between the US and the Soviet Union along with their allies. Berlin Crisis (1948-61): Its impacts on international relations and the division of Germany.
The Division of Germany
At the end of World War II Germany was divided into four occupation zones, with the United States, the Soviet Union, Britain and France controlling. Yet Berlin itself was split into four sectors, all of which were under Allied occupation (including the Soviet zone). But with the Soviets and the Western powers quickly becoming bitterly at odds, we left behind the Berlin Crisis.
Berlin Blockade and the Airlift
In 1948, the Soviet Union attempted to exert control over the whole city by closing West Berlin off land access. Road, rail, and canal routes were cut off to West Berlin, which had been cut off from the West by the work, cutting off supplies to it. As a response the Allies started the Berlin Airlift, flying in supplies to keep the western part of the city supplied.
An impressive logistical operation that took place between June 1948 and May 1949, the Berlin Airlift acted as a highpoint in the historical development of the air transport industry. Food, fuel, and others types of important supplies were brought to West Berlin by aircraft of the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The airlift’s success angered the Soviet Union enough that it was lifted of the blockade.
Berlin Wall Construction
After the Berlin Crisis of 1948–1949, East–West tension rose. Thousands of East Germans got out to the West seeking freedom, better life. In August 1961 to prevent this exodus the Soviet Union authorized the construction of Berlin Wall.
The Berlin Wall – Purpose and Structure
It was designed to be a solid wall between East and West Berlin, so much so that few East Germans could cross over to the West. 155 kilometers (96 miles) long, it had numerous barriers, including walls, fences and guarded checkpoints—’Checkpoints Charlie’ and ‘Checkpoints Alpha.’ Crossing were extremely dangerous, it was heavily fortified wall.
The Impact of the Berlin Wall
Construction of the Berlin Wall was consequential for Berliners and our international relations. Hundreds of families were separated, and most East Germans felt caged in behind their border. It was a wall for Germany and a wall for Cold War between the Soviet Union and the Western world.
The Fall of the Berlin Wall
It is the Berlin Wall, 28 years of physical and ideological barrier. But events in the late 1980s shattering the political status quo in East Germany and then the growing grassroots movements that would end in the destruction of the wall in November 1989 combined to bring about the end of the wall. Soon afterwards followed the reunification of Germany, and thus the ending of the Berlin Crisis.
The Peaceful Revolution and Opening of the Border
In 1989 the East German ‘Peaceful Revolution’ swept in a wave of continuous protests. Freedom of expression, political reform and, above all, the right to travel were demanded by people. The East German government announced that its people could cross their borders freely on November 9, 1989. The Berlin wall was dismantled after thousands of East Germans flooded into West Berlin.
The Reunification of Germany
A fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of East and West Germany was led. On this occasion, the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany), and the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) were united as a country once more on October 3, 1990.
Conclusion
The Berlin Crisis stands out for the Berlin Airlift, the building of the Berlin Wall and the fall of same. Thick with the history of the Cold War and postwar Germany’s struggle for control, it challenged the US.Soviet standoff over postwar Germany. The Berlin Crisis proved to be of lasting political, social and symbolical importance, and in the end, role in the reunification of Germany and the end of the Cold War the next decade.