Berlin Wall Came Down 25 Years Ago

— -- The Berlin Wall came down 25 years ago today.

Built in the middle of the night Aug. 13, 1961, the wall divided East and West Germany for 28 years to stop East Germans from leaving the Soviet Union-occupied country for the capitalist western state.

A look back at the rise and fall of the Berlin Wall

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From 1961 to 1989 the Berlin Wall was the physical manifestation of the Iron Curtain, separating West Berlin from the surrounding German Democratic Republic (East Germany). Originally erected as a series of barriers and barbed wire, the proper wall was built just inside East Germany territory with a large cleared space before the wall known as the "death strip." This year marks the 30th year since the removal of the wall and the reunification of Berlin. The construction site of the Berlin Wall is pictured on June 6, 1961.

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Over the years, what began as a simple fence turned into a concrete wall that separated the capital and became a focal point of the Cold War.

On Nov. 9, 1989, the East German government announced its citizens could move west. As people discovered guards were allowing crossings, East and West Germans began chipping the wall away.

East and West Germany reunified into a single German state less than a year later.

MORE: 8,000 BALLOONS COMMEMORATE FALL OF BERLIN WALL