History_-_to_What_Extend_Was_the_Fall_of_the_Berlin_Wall_Caused_by_Public_Unrest_

1 2 3 History Coursework To what extend was the fall of the Berlin Wall caused by public outrages' Contents Page: A) Plan of investigation – Page 3 B) Summary of evidence – Page 4-6 C) Evaluation of sources – Page 7 D) Analysis – Page 8 E) Conclusion – Page 9 F) List of sources – Page 10 1. Plan of investigation: The fall of the Berlin Wall was a major historical event not only for the German public but for world democracy also. The Berlin Wall divided Berlin from 13th August 1961 to 9th November 1989. During this time people living in East Berlin were not allowed to enter West Berlin, families were separated for Years and lived in a total surveillance state. The investigation assesses the significance of public demonstration for the fall of the Berlin Wall. In order to evaluate the significance of the public to the fall of the Berlin Wall, the investigation evaluates the opening of the boarders to other eastern countries like Hungary and the demonstrations in eastern Germany. The sources I used for the investigation are two German magazines based on the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. “Stern Extra, Vor 20 Jahren: So fiel die Mauer” and “Focus, 9. November 1989...und so fiel die Mauer” and an other source is “The Fontana History of Germany 1918-1990 The Divided Nation” by Mary Fulbrook. The magazines are based on the public's unrest and the and on the the political instability during this time and how it finally led to the fall of the Berlin Wall. My other source is a textbook written 1991 and therefore shortly after the fall. These sources will then be evaluated for their origins, purposes, values and limitations. However, the investigation does neither include the construction of the Berlin Wall nor the problems Germany had to face after its fall on the 9th November 1989. 2. Summary of Evidence: The Berlin Wall was a concrete wall built by the German Democratic Republic (GDR) that completely encircled West Berlin. This wall separated West Berlin from East Germany and East Berlin from 1961 to 1989. Both of the borders came to symbolize the Iron Curtain between Western Europe and the Eastern Bloc.[1] Political instability in the USSR under Gorbachev, and the rise of public unrest led to the fall of the Berlin Wall within a few weeks. The 9th November opened the way to unity for East Germany and East Berlin to the Western world.[2] Since the 4th September 1989, every Monday, everywhere in East Germany, demonstration where held to protest against the bad standard of living and to show their anger over the East German surveillance state.[3] On the 9th October 1989 in Leipzig, however, Erich Honecker decides to suppress the demonstration, which led to the first act of violence for a long time against the citizens of East Germany. The, 77 year old, party leader of the ruling SED in East Germany ordered the police to “Stop riots once and for all”.[4] One week later on the 16th October 1989, 120000 people came together in Leipzig to demonstrate peacefully. The government did not trust the demonstrators and their peaceful way, and sent in 3100 soldiers to protect the city.[5] They should only be allowed to use violence this time, if any of the Stasi or SED buildings were attacked. Fortunately, there was no need for violence. Uwe Schwabe an important initiator for the peaceful revolution told the demonstrators: “We just have one chance, if we stay demonstrating on the streets and don't let us frighten.”[6] People from now on shouted “Wir sind das Volk!” “ We are the people!” The communist governments in Eastern Europe started to become more democratic when Gorbachev was the Soviet leader from 1985. With the integration of the “Perestroika” more democratic elements could be found in communist countries. On the 27th June 1989, Hungary's foreign minister Gyula Horn and Austria's vice chancellor Alois Mock were the first ones to carve holes into the the Iron Curtain. Both cut the barbed wire fence on the boarders. On the 19th August 1989 over 600 people crossed the boarder from Hungary to Austria. Which was the biggest stampede since the construction of the Berlin Wall.[7] In August the embassies of West Germany had to close in Prague and Budapest because over 300 citizens of the German Democratic Republic wanted to force their departure to West Germany. Thousand of people were camping in front of the Embassies.[8] In August 1989 over 21000 people made it through Hungary over the boarder to Austria. Because of too many emigrants, Hungary closed the boarder temporary but opened it again on the 11th September, at midnight. In the next three days more then 15000 people left the GDR and went on the journey to West Germany. Until the 30th September over 4000 people were camping in front of the West German embassy in Prague, when finally Federal Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher talked from the balcony of the embassy to the people. “We came to you, to tell you that today your departure will be possible from now on.”[9] The political situation in the GDR got worse and worse. On the 23rd of October more than 300,000 people came together in Leipzig to protest, Hans Modrow said in an interview “...these events now will lead to a revolutionary change in the German Democratic Republic.”[10] On the 6th November the last Monday-demonstration took place before the final fall of the Berlin Wall. In Leipzig over 500000 people demonstrate and shout out loud “The wall must go!”[11] The Government of the GDR gets into even more pressure when Prague's Government threatened to close the boarder again. They SED, the ruling party, decided to create a new travel policy which they hoped would release pressure from the public. On the 9th November Günter Schabowski was given the order to talk to the press about the new policy. It contained that “private trips to foreign countries are allowed without showing of requirements.”[12]just a visa was needed which should be given immediately at the boarder. At 18:00 o'clock he talked to the press about the new policies, himself wondering what has been decided. At 19:00 o'clock, Ricardo Ehrman from the Italian press agency asked “When does this policy become effective'”[13] Schabowski replied spluttering: “As far as I know,...it will eventuate prompt, immediately.” What he did not know was that this conference was broadcasted live. Masses of people started running to the wall, demanding to let them enter West Berlin, nobody was allowed to enter till 23:00 o'clock when over 40000 people where crowded in front of the Berlin Wall shouting. At 23:30 o'clock the order came to open the boarders, to let everybody enter West Berlin. [14]The Berlin Wall was finally destroyed. 3. Evaluation of Sources: “Stern Extra, Vor 20 Jahren: So fiel die Mauer” by Werner Mathes and “Focus, 9. November 1989...und so fiel die Mauer” by Alexander Wendt are two German magazines published in October 2009 for the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Both magazines show the history of Berlin, Germany, families and individuals who suffered of the surveillance state. The magazines are very popular in Germany, especially for the intellectual public. Their purpose is to educate the reader about the happenings during the years 1989 and 1990 and to show “Germany's way to freedom”[15] by showing individual stories, and illustrations for the contrast from before and after the fall of the Berlin Wall. The value of these magazines is the advantage of hindsight. Both were written in 2009 and provide the reader with the most basic information without going in too much detail. This shows the limitations of both since they are just magazines they do not offer as much many information as a textbook. Also the texts are not judged and no interpretation is made. “The Fontana History of Germany 1918-1990 The Divided Nation” by Mary Fulbrook, is an English textbook. It was published in 1991. It was written shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunion of Germany, which leads us to the limitations of this source. Because it was written so short after the events it does not have the advantage of hindsight. However, the book's values lies in the fact that it provides deep detailed information about the events during this time. It is written very objectively and does not focus on stories of families and their suffering under the East German surveillance state. The book's purpose is to inform and educate the reader. 4. Analysis: The public unrest in the cause of the fall of the Berlin Wall can be seen as very important factor, since masses of people demonstrated every week till the final opening of the boarders. Every Monday since the 4th September 1989, people went on the streets demonstrating for their rights and for the fall of the Berlin Wall. When on the 9th October violence was used for the first time the will of the people came finally through. More and more people went on the streets until nearly 1000000 demonstrators came together in the whole of East Germany. However, it can also be said that the downfall of the GDR was already foreseen since there was an huge instability in the Government. When Hungary first opened its boarders to Austria ten thousands of people fled from GDR. This can also be seen as a public unrest, as thousands of people were camping in front of the German embassy, waiting for their departure. On the other hand it can be said that that public unrest was not a cause for the fall of the Berlin Wall since it was planed from the beginning by the Hungarian government to open the boarders. At the end of the day, public unrest was a huge factor, which put an enormous pressure on the government. This and the instability within the ruling party led finally to the fall of the Berlin Wall. 5. Conclusion: In 1989, Eastern Europe was shaken by a series of revolutions, starting in Poland and Hungary, to the German Democratic Republic. The East German revolution inaugurated a process which only a few months earlier would have seemed quite unimaginable.[16] To conclude this investigation it can be said that both, the public unrest and the political instability led to the fall of the Berlin Wall. Though one would have not happened without the other. If there was not any violence in the Monday Demonstrations on the 7th October in East Germany there would not have been such a big wave of public unrest. However, with the opening of the boarders to Hungary the people in East Germany saw a opportunity which they thought was unique. With the pressure coming from the citizens, the already down falling communist government influenced by the USSR, broke apart. The will of the people finally came through on the 9th November 1989 when Günter Schabowski, a member of the politburo, announced the new travel policies which allowed the people to travel to West Berlin and West Germany without waiting for long. This was the first time something like this happened. After 28 years, people where finally allowed to visit their families, friends and relatives. Word Count: 1853 6. Bibliography: Stern Extra, Vor 20 Jahren: So fiel die Mauer (2009) Focus 9. November 1989...und dann fiel die Mauer (2009) Wikipedia.org – Berlin Wall Jugendopposition.de The Fontana History of Germany. 1918 -1990 The Divided Nation (Mary Fulbrook) (1991) ----------------------- [1] Wikipedia.org – Berlin Wall [2] Focus – 9. November 1989...und dann fiel die Mauer. Page 6 [3] Focus – 9. November 1989...und dann fiel die Mauer. Page 44 [4] Focus – 9. November 1989...und dann fiel die Mauer. Page 46 Letter to „the first Bezirkssekretär. [5] Stern Extra – Vor 20 Jahren: So fiel die Mauer. Page 56 [6] Jugendopposition.de – Uwe Schwabe [7] Stern Extra – Vor 20 Jahren: So fiel die Mauer. Page 35 [8] Stern Extra – Vor 20 Jahren: So fiel die Mauer. Page 31 [9] Focus – 9. November 1989...und dann fiel die Mauer. Page 44 – Part of the speech of Federal Foreign Minster Hans-Dietrich Genscher on the 30th September 1989. [10] Stern Extra – Vor 20 Jahren: So fiel die Mauer. Page 38 – Interview with Hans Modrow about the demonstrations in the GDR before the fall of the Berlin Wall [11] Stern Extra – Vor 20 Jahren: So fiel die Mauer. Page 35 [12] Stern Extra – Vor 20 Jahren: So fiel die Mauer. Page 36 [13] Stern Extra – Vor 20 Jahren: So fiel die Mauer. Page 50 – Parts of the press conference on the 9th November [14] Focus – 9. November 1989...und dann fiel die Mauer. Page 36 [15] Focus – 9. November 1989...und dann fiel die Mauer. Page 6 [16] Germany 1918-1990 The Divided Nation – Page 318