Chapter 11 — History & Culture
Why was the Berlin Wall built?
To stop East Germans fleeing to the West through Berlin — the last easy crossing point. Built overnight in 1961, it stood for 28 years and killed at least 140 people trying to cross. Fell in 1989 during a wave of Eastern European revolutions.
Follow-up questions
Who tore it down?
East Berliners with hammers and picks, after a botched press-conference announcement suggested the border was open.
Is any of it left?
Small sections preserved as memorials; the rest sold as souvenirs or crushed for construction.
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