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East Berlin amidst the Wall Era
While it’s a well-known fact that there was a wall in Berlin, how many people truly understand why East and West had to be separated by the wall? After World War II, defeated Germany was divided into West Germany and East Germany by the Allied forces (United States, United Kingdom, France, Soviet Union). Berlin belonged to East Germany (German Democratic Republic) ruled by the Soviet Union, but Berlin itself was further divided, with West Berlin being administered by the United States, United Kingdom, France, and East Berlin by the Soviet Union. In other words, while part of East Germany, West Berlin belonged to West Germany, an unprecedented situation.
Initially, there was no wall, and travel between East and West was free. However, as the economic disparity between capitalist West Germany and socialist East Germany widened, and East Germany’s economy deteriorated while West Germany prospered, people from East Berlin began defecting to West Berlin in droves seeking a freer and better life. Sensing a threat to the state’s existence, East Germany sealed the border between East and West Berlin on August 13, 1961, and erected the wall overnight, surrounding West Berlin. The wall, 3 meters high with barbed wire, was heavily guarded, and people from East Berlin were not allowed near it. Despite this, some who attempted to escape lost their lives in the process.
