Berlin wall

Today I a going to write about the Berlin wall as it is a very large part of the history of Germany.

After the second world war Germany was split into four parts each run by a different country, France, England, America and Russia. France, England and America were allies at that time and together created West Germany while Russia created east Germany. Although Berlin was inside of east Germany it being the capital was split up between France, England, America and Russia. Up until 1961 East german citizens were allowed to enter west Germany. It became much more difficult in in 1952 when the inner German border was created to stop people from leaving east Germany as the conditions there where not very good. The Berlin wall was created in 1961 because nearly 3 million people had migrated from east Germany to west Germany from 1949 up until 1961! *1, *6 and *7

Construction on the Berlin wall started on the 13th August 1961. It was built by the German Democratic Republic (East German government.) *2

In case anyone tried to pass or climb the wall there would be armed guards at the top ready to shoot. If you tried to pass the wall you would be shot immediately and killed.  Over 80 people were killed while trying to escape! *3

Finally in 1989 on the 9th November after weeks of civil unrest the East German government granted permission for all GDR citizens to enter west Berlin and Germany. As soon as the news got out hundreds and hundreds of people from west Germany and east Germany all crowded round and climbed on the wall and celebrated. The demolition of the wall officially began on the 13th June 1990 and finished sometime in 1992. *2

One of the most famous checkpoints is checkpoint Charlie. Checkpoint Charlie was the only checkpoint where there would be queues of people waiting to cross. *5

The East side gallery is a 1316 metre long section of the Berlin wall that is still standing covered in over 100 paintings from artists all over the world! *4

This is one of my favourite parts of the Berlin wall

Here are some of the links I used:

*1     http://www.dailysoft.com/berlinwall/history/why-the-berlinwall-was-built.htm

*2     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Wall

*3    http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/east-germans-kill-man-trying-to-cross-berlin-wall

*4    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Side_Gallery

*5    https://wiki.kidzsearch.com/wiki/Checkpoint_Charlie

*6    http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/wjec/history/pdf/berlin_blockade.pdf 

*7   http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/history/berlin-wall-what-you-need-to-know-about-the-barrier-that-divided-east-and-west-9847347.html

Berlin

Today as my first blog for my new topic, Germany, I am going to write about Berlin.

Berlin was made the capital of Germany in 1990 although the government headquarters were moved from Bonn to Berlin in 1991. *4

The population of Berlin (in 2017) is 3,593,000 people! That means the population has increased by 30,000 people since 2015!

The city's name comes comes from a West Slavic word meaning 'river rake,' a scaffold of beams built over a river to prevent logs from jamming. *3

Berlin is probably most well known for the Berlin wall. The Berlin wall was built on the 13th of August 1961 to separate the east of Berlin from the west of Berlin because people where trying to leave east Berlin because the conditions where bad. After weeks of civil unrest on the 19th November, 1989 the east German government granted permission for all GDR (the German democratic republic) citizens to enter west Germany and Berlin. Crowds of Germans from each side came and climbed on the wall and explored each side. Later on in the night the wall was knocked down. (I will learn some more about the Berlin wall later this month as it is a big part of German history.) *2

The Berlin wall

Here are some facts about Berlin that you may have not known:

1. It has over 1,700 bridges (that's even more bridges than Venice!) and more than 180 kilometres of navigable water.
2. It has the longest open air gallery ever! The gallery is actually a 1.3 kilometre part of the Berlin wall called the East Side Gallery that has 101 paintings by artists from 21 countries.
3. It is home to one of the tallest pieces of architecture in Europe, the Berliner Fernsehturm (the Berlin TV tower) is 368 metres high with a 207 metres high viewing floor. 
4. Berlin is the greenest city in Germany! About 44% of Berlin is made up of parks, recreational areas, woods, and rivers.  
5. Berlin is the only city in the world to have three active opera houses! *1

Here are some links to the pages used,

*1  http://www.globalblue.com/destinations/germany/berlin/top-10-facts-on-berlin/#slide7

*2  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Wall

*3  https://www.ancestry.co.uk/name-origin?surname=berlin

*4  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decision_on_the_Capital_of_Germany

*5  https://wiki.kidzsearch.com/wiki/Berlin