Page 2- The Anti-Fascist Protection Barrier
The German Democratic Republic (GDR), the name of the East German nation-state,
had a much tougher time economically than the Federal Republic of Germany
(FRG), the name of the West German nation-state. Many of the GDR’s youngest
and most ambitious citizens left for the more prosperous economy of the
FRG. Because there was no physical barrier separating East and West Berlin,
thousands of East Germans fled to the West. It was estimated that as many
as 426,000 fled the GDR in the first six months of 1953. If the GDR’s
economy was
Berlin looks on
as East German Army closes border and begins building the wall.
ever to recover, this brain drain had to be stopped. The Warsaw Pact states
met in Moscow on 3-5 August 1961 to discuss this crisis. There the decision
was made to close off the East Berlin border. This was completed on 13 August,
at first with barbed wire and troops. However, when no countermeasures from
the Western powers followed, a more permanent concrete wall was constructed.
