How To Build The Berlin Wall

Therefore leading up to the decision to construct the Berlin Wall. In 1949 and 1961, there were about two and a half million East Germans that had fled from East to West Germany. Many of those people were skilled workers and had traveled to West Germany for work. It was on August 13, 1961, when the Communist government of the German Democratic Republican started to build a barbed wire and concrete Antifaschistischer or wall in between East and West Berlin. Due to this, August 13th, 1961, was later known as Barbed Wire Sunday.
The original purpose of the wall was to keep so called fascists out of East Germany. Germany did not want the fascists undermining the socialist state in any such way. After the wall was already up, the German troops continued to reinforce the wall with concrete in some places and “death strips” in others. These deathstrips were around 27 miles long and consisted of watchtowers, guard dog runs, and even trip-wire machine guns. Families were separated with no option of getting to the other side of Germany where loved ones had …show more content…
Even as the wall was being reinforced with bricks, there were German officials that would stand with guns to make sure none of the people on the other side of the wall they were reinforcing would try and intervene with their efforts. Many people would try and cross the wall and escape but would either get cut up from all of the barbed wire on the top of the wall or would get shot and killed by the officers guarding the wall in watchtowers. The wall was surrounded by watchtowers, gun placements, and even mines. The Berlin Wall consisted of electric fences along the 75 mile stretch as well. There was a reported number of 5 thousand East Germans who were lucky and crossed the wall to safety. While on the other hand, there were another 5 thousand reported men that had been captured and an additional 190 men were even killed during the actual crossing of the