This Day in History: , East Germany Opens
the Berlin Wall.
November 9, 1989.
The East German action followed a decision
by Hungarian officials a few weeks earlier
to open the border between Hungary and Austria.
This meant that East Germans could circumvent the Wall by going through Hungary, into Austria and into West Germany.
The following day,
celebrating Germans
began to tear the wall down.
One of the ugliest and
most infamous symbols of the
Cold War was soon reduced to rubble.
The decision to open the
wall was a reflection of immense
political change in East Germany.
The destruction of the Berlin Wall
was one of the most significant
actions leading to the end of the Cold War
