Berlin Wall Section

In 1961 the German Democratic Republic (GDR) built a wall to close the border between East and West Berlin, forming a barrier between the Soviet and Western sectors of the city.

Although Berlin had been divided into different sectors in 1945, freedom of movement was possible until the Wall was built. In 1989, when the communist regimes in neighbouring Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia collapsed, pressure mounted in the GDR to restore freedom of movement between East and West Germany. Finally, on 9 November 1989 all borders between them were officially re-opened and not long afterwards the Berlin Wall was demolished.