aug 13, 1961 - Start of the Berlin Wall

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The communist government of the German Democratic Republic started construction of the Berlin Wall on August 13th, 1961. The official reason for the wall was to keep ‘fascists’ out of East Berlin. The wall served a more destructive purpose, however, by tearing families and communities apart. The divide started off as fence and barbed wire, but quickly became a solid concrete wall with tall watchtowers and constant surveillance. There was a curfew set on the residents of East Berlin, and only under extreme conditions could anyone cross the border. The constant surveillance, alongside there only being three checkpoints in the wall, made it impossible for residents to escape East Berlin. Although the wall had awful effects on the people of Berlin, John F Kennedy was right to refer to the wall as “a hell of a lot better than a war.”(1961).

History.com Editors. "Berlin Wall." History.com, A&E Television Networks, 28 Oct. 2009, https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/berlin-wall.

-Will Camp

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