On August 13, 1961, the Berlin Wall was erected and the GDR closed the border with West Berlin.
The Berlin Wall, which became a symbol of the division between the ideologies of East and West, no longer exists. The only reminder of its existence is a thin paved line left where the wall once stood.
This is reminiscent of "Historical Diary".
Whether the fall of the Berlin Wall means that ideological differences have also disappeared and what is the history of this, as some call it “Wall of Shame”, see in some interesting facts.
1. The Berlin Wall, which was originally a barbed wire fence, was built literally overnight. This happened on the night of August 13, 1961. People in the eastern part of Berlin had no idea what awaited them in the morning. The concrete wall was erected only in 1965
2. The authorities in East Germany publicly denied that they intended to build the wall about a month and a half before they did.
3. The communist government of East Berlin announced that the wall was built to protect the population from Western spies who sought to prevent the construction of a socialist society.
4. The Berlin Wall became a symbol of the Iron Curtain separating Eastern from Western Europe.
5. About 20% of the population of East Germany left the country in the years before the construction of the Berlin Wall.
6. Many observation towers were built on the Berlin Wall, and the guards were ordered to shoot anyone who tried to escape.
7. All buildings near the Berlin Wall were destroyed, and mines were placed in the area around the wall, the so-called Dead Zone.
8. It is estimated that about 5,000 people managed to escape in the total 28 years of its existence.
9. 70 tunnels were dug under the wall for the purpose of escape. People were quite resourceful in their attempts to leave East Germany. Some dug tunnels under the wall, others used hot air balloons, others slipped through the sewer system, and still others directly jumped over the barbed wire that stood in place of the wall for the first few years of its existence.
10. About 230 people were killed trying to cross the Berlin Wall, 260 were injured. Gunther Litwin is the first victim of the wall. He was killed in August 1961. 18-year-old Peter Fechter is perhaps the most dramatic victim of the wall. He was shot on August 17, 1962 and left to die in the street in front of passers-by. Today there is a monument to him in this place. Chris Geoffroy, 20, is the latest victim. He was killed on February 6, 1989 – nine months and three days before the fall of the wall, 2 families escaped in a homemade balloon
11. 5043 managed to escape (of them 574 were soldiers) 3221 were arrested near the wall
12. There is a psychological disease called Mauerkrankheit, or in translation Wall Disease, the sufferers of which are afraid of closed spaces. The disease is typical of East German citizens, and symptoms include depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, and suicide attempts.
13. The west side of the wall was covered with graffiti. Eastern no.
14. People in West Germany used the wall to get rid of their rubbish. If they didn't need something, they just threw it over the other side of the wall. Still, there was no danger of them getting through and taking it.
15. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, pieces of it were taken home by people as souvenirs, and some were even sold on eBay.
16. One of Berlin's most popular sights is the replica checkpoint known as Checkpoint Charlie, one of the places through which the Berlin Wall could be legally crossed.
Here are some more facts about the wall:
-43 km. is the length of the wall in Berlin itself
-3.6 m is its height
-155 km. is the entire length of the wall
-302 observation towers were used by East German border guards, as well as:
-20 bunkers
-259 dogs