To stop its residents from emigrating to West Germany, East Germany partitioned the city in 1961, giving rise to the Berlin Wall. The four-meter-high wall had 293 observation towers, 57 bunkers, and a length of 155 kilometers by the time it was demolished in 1989. It also cut across 55 streets.
Only a few short sections of this mockery, which is now covered in graffiti, are still standing, one of which is 1.4 kilometers long and is preserved as part of the Berlin Wall Memorial (Gedenkstätte Berliner Mauer). It serves as a gruesome reminder of the hatred that once separated Europe.
The Berlin Wall was a barrier separating the Mitte and Wedding neighborhoods on Bernauer Strasse in the east and west. The people who lived here thought this wall segment was especially spectacular. In the East Berlin region, the border followed a row of homes.
The Günter Litfin Memorial, a former watchtower now set up as a memorial, pays tribute to the first civilian killed trying to cross from east to west, and the Monument in Memory of the Divided City and the Victims of Communist Tyranny are also the highlight of a visit. The Marienfelde Refugee Center Museum has exhibits relating to the 1.5 million people who passed through Berlin as refugees.