In 1945, defeated Germany was divided between the Allied countries of the Unites States, Britain, France, and the Soviet Union. Berlin was also divided, although it was deep within the Soviet sector. By 1949, the countries of East Germany and West Germany were established, with East Germany under communist control. Barriers were put up to keep East Germans from leaving. The West German sector of Berlin was enclosed by a wall in 1962. In most places, this Berlin Wall was 100-300 feet wide, marking a "no man's land" where East Germans could be shot trying to cross over to the West. The wall finally came down in 1989, and the two Germanys were reunited in 1990.
The people who rose up to bring the wall down destroyed much of it quickly, and authorities were keen on obliterating it entirely. West German legislator Michael Cramer wanted to preserve parts of the wall as a memorial to its history, but only a few small sections remain today. They do not indicate the wall's route, nor its size -wrapped completely around West Berlin, it was 100 miles long! Cramer spearheaded a project to make the former site of the wall into something to benefit the city and still mark that period of history. The result is Mauerpark, a public space with a 100-mile bicycle and pedestrian trail called Berliner Mauerweg, or Berlin Wall Trail. It winds through city streets, forests, and green space, with historical markers and memorials along the way. Read how Mauerpark came about and what it means to a united Germany at Smithsonian.
(Image credit: Karen Mardahl)