A lively and informative new podcast for kids that the whole family will enjoy! That barrier, the Berlin Wall, was first erected on the night of August 12–13, 1961, as the result of a decree passed on August 12 by the East German Volkskammer (“Peoples’ Chamber”). In the system’s final form, the outer wall, called the Vorderlandmauer, was 11.5–13 feet (3.5–4 metres) tall, and the inner wall, the Hinterlandmauer, was 6.5–10 feet (2–3 metres) tall. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. This was known as the Cold War—not a formally declared war, but an intense state of ideological conflict, diplomatic tension, and an arms race that would see the creation of increasingly deadly nuclear weapons. Segments of the Berlin Wall still exist in modern Berlin, notably on display at the Topography of Terror museum, the Berlin Wall Memorial, and the East Side Gallery. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. that will help our users expand their word mastery. Absentee Ballot vs. Mail-In Ballot: Is There A Difference? At its longest, the Berlin wall covered over 100 miles. See more. Berlin wall definition, a guarded concrete wall, 28 miles (45 km), with minefields and controlled checkpoints, erected across Berlin by East Germany in 1961 and dismantled in 1989. The Berlin Wall came to symbolize the Cold War’s division of East from West Germany and of eastern from western Europe. Today, it stretches for thousands of miles along China’s historic northern border. In November 1989, the East German government reopened the border and issued visas to East Berliners. Their loss threatened to destroy the economic viability of the East German state. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Overview of the reunification of Germany, including a discussion of the Berlin Wall's fall. The expression fall of the Berlin Wall refers to the formal opening of the border between Soviet-controlled, Communist East Berlin and Western-occupied West Berlin in 1989. Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020, The Berlin wall was one of the most visible signs of the. Pieces and whole segments of the wall are also on display in museums all over the world. The rise of good governance as a focus for development reform can be linked to the fall of the Berlin Wall, the end of the Cold War, and the resulting (temporary) triumphalism of the dominant Western liberal democratic powers. Berlin crisis of 1961, Cold War conflict between the Soviet Union and the United States concerning the status of the divided German city of Berlin. In the summer of 1961, the wall was built, and East Germany forbade its citizens to cross the wall, at the risk of being shot immediately by border guards. East Germany’s hard-line communist leadership was forced from power in October 1989 during the wave of democratization that swept through eastern Europe. West German citizens gathering at a newly created opening in the Berlin Wall at Potsdamer Platz in November 1989. The Berlin Wall was built by the German Democratic Republic during the Cold War to prevent its population from escaping Soviet-controlled East Berlin to West Berlin, which was controlled by the major Western Allies. The first version of the Berlin Wall was made of barbed wire and cinder blocks, materials later replaced with concrete walls, towering up to 15-feet high in some areas and capped with barbed wire.