Berlin Wall
By Arturo Parra
5 Facts
- August 13, 1961: East Germans close the border between East and West Berlin.
- More than 100 people died attempting to cross the wall.
- The Berlin Wall was more than 87 miles long.
- There was 2 walls built. The space in between those walls became know as "the death strip".
- The wall was reinforced by mesh fencing, signal fencing, anti-vehicle trenches, barbed wire, dogs on long lines, "beds of nails" under balconies hanging over the "death strip", over 116 watchtowers, and 20 bunkers.
The Berlin Wall was an important factor in the cold war. The Eastern side claimed that the wall was built to protect its population from fascists elements conspiring to prevent "will of the people" in making a communist state in East Germany.
The Wall served to prevent the massive emigration that marked East Germany and the communist Eastern Berlin during the post-World War II period. The US helped by sending 1,534 tons of supplies each day to sustain the over two million people of Berlin.
Connections
- The Berlin Wall is also associated with the Berlin Airlift, in which the US sent supplies to West Berlin.
2. John F. Kennedy visited the Berlin Wall on June 26, 1963 for a speech. It made a clear statement of U.S. policy.