The consequences of World War II led to Germany’s falling apart into four occupation zones. There were three western zones – American, British, and French, and an eastern Soviet zone. This eastern zone occupied by Soviet troops received the name East Berlin. It is informative to look at what happened to Germany (particularly Berlin) after the division between the allied powers.
Overall, the division of Germany is a consequence of the Second World War and the struggle between two political forces – western and eastern. The Soviet troops started a blockade of West Berlin in 1948. After World War II, Germany was ruined. Multiple wreckage and deconstructions turned Berlin into ruins. After the zone separation, The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED) wanted to prove that residents in need of housing deserve luxurious houses. They wanted to create a new city, free from inequalities (Stangl 190). The project involved perfect homes, which represented the supremacy of socialism. On the contrary, Interbau opposed the project of the GDR as a response to the socialistic east. These two projects do not share similarities; while Stalinallee aimed to show the wealth, Interbau was generated for common lively purposes.
In 1961, the building of the Berlin Wall started. It remains unclear whether the idea of this construction was born in Germany or Moscow. However, it became clear that the German people were separated not only by zone division but also by the wall. The wall became a direct answer from GDR leaders to the unwillingness of their citizens to live under socialism and a symbol of an explicit separation. From August 1961 to November 1989, the Berlin Wall divided Germany into West and East zones. For West and East Germans, it meant the separation from their families and natives. Sometimes the wall came across a single street, and people tried to climb over it. However, as the length of the wall was relatively decent, inhabitants tried to escape to another part of the city. Unfortunately, most of those escapes were fatal for them. Thus, stricter police measures were implemented to avoid such runaways.
The work by Stöver, 2013, discusses the history of Berlin and includes the story of the postwar period and the beginning of the Cold War. On April 28, 1945, the Soviet general and a military commander of Berlin Nikolai Berzarin started to appoint German district mayors. Nowadays, it is known that those posts were vacant for “selected people” (Stöver 83) to start preparation for policies on occupation. Most of these leaders were communists or members of the Socialist Unity Party, and various anti-fascist policies began.
Berlin was destroyed after World War II; the city turned into ruins. The most crucial aspect is that the text reports Soviet soldiers committing rapes, and “up to 100,000 women were affected” on this basis (Stöver 84). Later, many members started to leave the council because parties functioned “only with difficulty” (Stöver 84). It is essential to highlight that there were constant arguments about demolitions and compensation payments. Nevertheless, the text claims that Berlin required precise guidelines and leaders and asked the Soviet Union to facilitate.
However, it became impossible due to the USSR’s prohibition of a “shared government” within their sector (Stöver 86). Moreover, the Soviet Union joined Anglo-Americans and created a tandem on considering Germany an enemy. Interestingly, later this union unraveled and tried to receive “conquered terrain and resources” (Stöver 86), which would be useful. Overall, according to the abovementioned text, Berlin played the role of the frontline between the rival countries.
The issue of rape is considered a very complicated and significant matter. The facts from history prove that German women and innocent girls were subject to violence by Soviet soldiers (Gebhardt and Somers 3). Moreover, these females remain in hospitals and mental hospitals with the painful memories that they suffered. It is an essential topic for consideration and discussion, which was ignored for a long time.
References
Gebhardt, Miriam, and Nick Somers. Crimes Unspoken: The Rape of German Women at the End of the Second World War. 1st ed., Polity, 2016.
Stangl, Paul. “Stalinallee.” Risen from Ruins, 2018, pp. 190–259. Stanford University Press.
Stöver, Bernd. Berlin – English Edition: A Short History. Beck C. H., 2013.