Britannica Links
- Berlin Wall Berlin Wall, German Berliner Mauer, barrier that surrounded West Berlin and prevented access to it from East Berlin and adjacent areas of East Germany during the period from 1961 to 1989.
- Berlin blockade and airlift Berlin blockade and airlift, international crisis that arose from an attempt by the Soviet Union, in 1948–49, to force the Western Allied powers (the United States, the United Kingdom, and France) to abandon their post-World War II jurisdictions in West Berlin.
- The Reunification of Germany The swift and unexpected downfall of the German Democratic Republic was triggered by the decay of the other communist regimes in eastern Europe and the Soviet Union.
Topics
- May, E. R. (1998). America's Berlin. Heart of the Cold War. Foreign Affairs, 77(4), 148-160.
Argues that the United States-Soviet Union rivalry over Berlin, Germany shaped the Cold War more than any other confrontation. History of the blockade of Berlin by the Red Army; Building of the Berlin Wall; Face-off between tanks at Checkpoint Charlie; Leadership of US President Harry Truman; Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev; US President John F. Kennedy; Effect of Cuban missile crisis; Tearing down the Berlin Wall. - National Archives. (n.d.). The Berlin crisis of 1961. Retrieved from http://www.archives.gov/research/foreign-policy/cold-war/1961-berlin-crisis/2011-conference.htmlThe National Declassification Center at the National Archives, in partnership with the Historical Review Program of the CIA, hosted a one-day conference to mark the anniversary of the Berlin Crisis of 1961. October 27th, 2011 was the 50th anniversary of the American/Soviet showdown at Checkpoint Charlie.
mentorinabox. (2012, March 31). John F. Kennedy's speech in Berlin [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56V6r2dpYH8
- Berlin Wall Memorial. (2016). The Berlin Wall. Retrieved from http://www.berliner-mauer-gedenkstaette.de/en/the-berlin-wall-10.html
The Berlin Wall enclosed West Berlin from August 13, 1961 to November 9, 1989, cutting a line through the entire city center. It was supposed to prevent East Berliners and citizens of East Germany from fleeing to the West, but the Wall was unable to entirely stop the mass of people from fleeing. Consequently, in 1961, the SED, the ruling Communist Party in East Germany, began adding more border fortifications to the Wall, creating a broad, many-layered system of barriers. - History.com. (2009). Berlin Wall. Retrieved from http://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/berlin-wallOn August 13, 1961, the Communist government of the German Democratic Republic (GDR, or East Germany) began to build a barbed wire and concrete “Antifascistischer Schutzwall,” or “antifascist bulwark,” between East and West Berlin.
Haste, C. (Producer). (1998). The Wall: 1958-1963 [Television series episode]. In M. Smith (Producer), Cold War. Atlanta, Georgia: Turner Original Productions.
Haste, C. (Producer). (1998). The Wall comes down: 1989 [Television series episode]. In M. Smith (Producer), Cold War. Atlanta, Georgia: Turner Original Productions.
- Bytwerk, R. L. (1998). Introduction. Retrieved from http://research.calvin.edu/german-propaganda-archive/ddr10.htmThe GDR was always fond of anniversaries. This is a translation of the first two chapters of a booklet titled Ten years of the German Democratic Republic, published by the GDR government on the 10th anniversary of its establishment. It was something of a commemorative item, laying out the accomplishments and policies of the GDR. It provides a good example of the typical rhetoric of the period. The introduction is by Wilhelm Pieck, then president of the GDR, an office later abolished.
- Burant, S. R., & Library of Congress. (n.d.). East Germany: A country study. Retrieved from https://www.loc.gov/item/87600490/This study attempts to present the dominant social, economic, political, and national security aspects of East Germany.
- Luy, G. J. (2011). Two plus Four: a diplomatic masterpiece. New Zealand International Review, 36(2), 6-10.The article reports that the Two plus Four process, signed in Moscow, Russia on September 12, 1990 led to German reunification. George Julius Luy narrates the differences in lifestyle of people from the West and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) and how East Germans took refuge in West German embassies in places like Prague and Warsaw during the East-West division.