The Berlin Wall fell in 1989, ending its division of Berlin.
East Germany began constructing the barrier on 13 August 1961 to stop the mass movement of people from East Berlin and East Germany into West Berlin. The system included concrete walls, fences, watchtowers, patrol roads, lights, and a guarded strip known as the death strip. It separated families and made movement between the two parts of the city highly restricted.
On the evening of 9 November 1989, East German official Günter Schabowski announced new travel rules and, in response to a question, indicated that they would take effect immediately. Crowds gathered at crossing points, and guards eventually opened the gates. People climbed onto the wall and began dismantling sections, both symbolically and physically.
The fall of the Wall became a defining moment in the collapse of communist governments across Eastern Europe. German reunification followed on 3 October 1990. Some sections remain as memorials, including the East Side Gallery, where artists painted murals on a preserved stretch.