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1953: workers on a frieze in Frankfurter Allee<br />
production. Soviet tanks suppressed<br />
the rebellion while, in<br />
West Berlin, the uprising was<br />
interpreted as a demonstration<br />
for German unification.<br />
1961: Building of the Wall<br />
The building of the Berlin<br />
Wall, which commenced during<br />
the night of 12 August 1961,<br />
was, after the surrender of 1945,<br />
the second most traumatic event<br />
for many Berliners. Many families<br />
were torn apart by the concrete<br />
wall and more than 100<br />
people were to be killed over the<br />
following 30 years at the border<br />
dividing East and West.<br />
1963: “I am a Berliner”<br />
No other politician was as<br />
enthusiastically received in Berlin<br />
as the US President John F.<br />
Kennedy. On 17 July 1963, in<br />
front of Rathaus Schöneberg, he<br />
declared to the cheering crowd:<br />
“I am a Berliner”. Berliners<br />
had forgiven the US for staying<br />
silent when the Wall was built.<br />
Kennedy confirmed once more<br />
that the Western Allies would<br />
stand by Berlin and support the<br />
town, just as they had done<br />
during the blockade of 1948–9,<br />
when the US and Britain air-lifted<br />
food to the “island” of<br />
West Berlin.<br />
1968:<br />
The late<br />
Sixties<br />
During the late<br />
1960s, West<br />
Berlin students<br />
transformed<br />
Germany. Rudi<br />
1991: Berlin becomes the capital<br />
For famous Berliners see pp50–1<br />
Dutschke and others propounded<br />
political change, free love and a<br />
reappraisal of Germany’s Nazi<br />
past. The movement came to an<br />
untimely end when Dutschke<br />
was assassinated in April 1968.<br />
1989: Fall of the Wall<br />
The fall of the Berlin Wall in<br />
November 1989 heralded a new<br />
dawn. For the first time in 30<br />
years, Berliners from both halves<br />
of the divided city were able to<br />
visit each other. The town celebrated<br />
all along Ku’damm and in<br />
front of the Brandenburg Gate.<br />
Celebrations after the Fall of the Berlin Wall<br />
When the Wall was built, Willy<br />
Brandt, then governing mayor of<br />
West Berlin, had promised:<br />
“Berlin will survive!” He was<br />
right.<br />
1991: Berlin becomes the<br />
capital of Germany<br />
In 1991, Berlin was officially<br />
declared the capital of the<br />
reunified Federal Republic of<br />
Germany. Allied Forces left the<br />
city during 1994, but it was only<br />
when the Bundestag, the<br />
German parliament, moved here<br />
from Bonn on 19 April 1999 that<br />
Berlin became the “real”<br />
capital. Today,<br />
all the main<br />
ministries, the<br />
Bundesrat (upper<br />
house), and the<br />
Chancellor’s and<br />
the President’s<br />
offices are based<br />
in Berlin.<br />
Berlin’s Top 10<br />
43