Berlin Marks The 50th Anniversary Of The Berlin Wall

50 Years Ago, The Berlin Wall Arose To Divide -- MSNBC

Former symbol of Cold War and violence attracts millions of tourists

Fifty years ago, the Soviet-controlled German Democratic Republic began to build what it euphemistically called its “Anti-Fascist Protection Rampart,” better known as the Berlin Wall.

Few then could have imagined that the concrete wall would become a blood-soaked symbol of the Cold War.

But on Aug. 13, 1961, engineers for the Communist-controlled dictatorship began erecting a barbed-wire fence around West Berlin in an attempt to demonstrate East Germany’s sovereignty to the world and prevent a population that disagreed with its policies from fleeing to the West.

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More News On The 50th Anniversary Of The Berlin Wall

Berlin Wall Commemorated by Germany 50 Years After Construction -- Bloomberg
Berlin Wall 50 years on: Germany throws full state approval behind remembrance -- The Telegraph
PHOTOS: New Images Of The Berlin Wall From The East In The 1960s -- Business Insider
50 Years Later, Looking Back at Building the Berlin Wall -- PBS
Recalling When a Wall Split a City Apart -- New York Times
Berlin Wall 50 years on: families divided, loved ones lost -- The Guardian
AP photographer remembers Berlin Wall -- AP
Tearing Down Berlin’s Mental Wall -- Peter Scheider, New York Times