OPENING OF THE BERLIN WALL

Opening of the Berlin Wall

On November 9th, 1989, the emblem of Cold War division in Europe suddenly became porous. For decades, United States soldiers had served in and around West Berlin, helping to guarantee access to the city and to deter the Soviet Union and its allies. That evening, after confusing announcements by East German officials about new travel rules, crowds surged toward crossing points in the wall that had split families, streets, and neighborhoods since the early 1960s. Border guards, facing growing numbers and unclear orders, chose not to fire and began allowing people to pass. Images of East and West Berliners embracing and chipping away at the concrete flashed around the world. For American troops stationed in Germany, the moment signaled that the containment strategy they had supported for so long was entering a new phase. Within a few years, the wall’s ruins would mark not a fortified frontier but the memory of a confrontation the United States and its allies had endured for decades.