BSC Preussen was an ice hockey team in Berlin , Germany that existed between 1983 and 2005. They played in the highest German league from 1987 to 2001, reaching the playoff semifinals on seven occasions.
105-528: BSC Preussen was founded in 1983 in West Berlin . by the ice hockey sections of Berliner Schlittschuhclub and BFC Preussen . The ice hockey section of Berliner SC had split from the main club in 1981 and folded just a year later. BFC Preussen had won promotion to the 2nd Bundesliga in 1983. BSC Preussen thus started out playing in the 2nd Bundesliga in 1983–84, and won promotion to the Bundesliga for
210-469: A transit visa for a fee of 5 Western Deutsche Mark . For journeys between West Berlin and Poland or Czechoslovakia through East Germany, each traveller was also required to present a valid visa for the destination country. The transit routes for road travel connecting West Berlin to other destinations usually consisted of autobahns and other highways, marked by Transit signs. Transit travellers (German: Transitreisende ) were prohibited to leave
315-753: A "third" German jurisdiction, called an "independent political unit" ( German : selbständige politische Einheit ). On maps of East Berlin, West Berlin often did not appear as an adjacent urban area but as a monochrome terra incognita, sometimes showing the letters WB, meaning "Westberlin" ( German : Westberlin ) or overlaid with a legend or pictures. It was often labelled "Westberlin special political area" ( German : Besonderes politisches Gebiet Westberlin ). The Federal Republic of Germany issued West German passports to West Berliners on request that showed West Berlin as their place of residence. However, West Berliners could not use their passports for crossing East German borders and were denied entrance by any country of
420-604: A fixture, and so essential to the running of the East German economy, that the East German government accounted for the ransoms as a fixed item in the GDR's state budget. Those who were ransomed would be taken to a detention centre in Karl-Marx-Stadt (now Chemnitz) before being driven across the border in coaches and officially expelled by the GDR authorities. As the two governments did not have any formal relations when
525-491: A health scare after reunification. A subsequent investigation by federal authorities found that these involuntary screenings did not result in "a harmful dose" despite violating basic radiation safety protocols. Passengers, too, were checked thoroughly with an inspection of their papers and frequently an interrogation about their travel plans and reasons for travelling. The system was slow and low-technology, relying largely on vast card indexes recording travellers' details, but it
630-494: A last resort, massive rolling barriers ( Kraftfahrzeugschnellsperre ) 11 metres (36 ft) long and weighing six tons apiece could be catapulted across the carriageway using hydraulic rams. They were capable of stopping a 50-ton truck travelling at 80 kilometres per hour (50 mph). The guards at border crossings were, as elsewhere, authorised to use weapons to stop escape attempts. Vehicles were subjected to rigorous checks to uncover escapees. Inspection pits and mirrors allowed
735-478: A limited number of air, road, rail and river routes. Travellers to and from Denmark , Sweden , Poland and Czechoslovakia could also pass through East Germany. Access rights for non-Germans were otherwise very restricted. Foreigners had to submit an itinerary to the East German state tourist office up to nine weeks in advance, paying booking fees and registering with the local police on arrival, purchasing fuel only from specially approved petrol stations and spending
840-418: A prescribed minimum of money each day. They were required to stay in state-owned " Interhotels ", where rooms cost five to ten times more than the price of the (very few) ordinary East German hotels. Given these restrictions, not surprisingly, East Germany did not develop much of a tourist industry; even as late as May 1990, there were only 45,000 hotel beds in the entire country. Westerners found crossing
945-591: A second in Berlin- Frohnau , finished on 16 May 1980 with a height of 358 m (1,175 ft). This tower was demolished on 8 February 2009. West Berliners could travel to West Germany and all Western and non-aligned states at all times, except during the Berlin Blockade by the Soviet Union (24 June 1948 to 12 May 1949) when there were restrictions on passenger flight capacity imposed by
1050-427: A variety of measures. The process of applying for an exit permit was deliberately intended to be slow, demeaning, and frustrating, with a low chance of success. Applicants were pushed to the margins of society. They were demoted or sacked from their jobs, excluded from universities, and subjected to ostracism . If the applicants were parents, they could face the threat of having their children taken into state custody on
1155-518: A visa to cross the border, they were still subject to East German government restrictions on the western side. Groups visiting West Germany were required to leave behind all of their identification, without which they could not prove their entitlement to West German citizenship. Individual members were forbidden from walking alone or collecting the 100 DM "welcome money" that the West German government gave to all East German visitors. The group as
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#17327800245371260-412: A whole was responsible for making sure none of its members defected. They could all expect punishment if someone did "take off". Such rules provided a powerful incentive to keep potential defectors in line. Ordinary East Germans strongly resented the travel restrictions. Most holidays had to be spent at home or in state-run holiday resorts. Husbands and wives often had to take separate holidays because of
1365-477: A worker to around 11,250 DM for a doctor; the justification, according to East Germany, was that this was compensation for the money invested by the state in the prisoner's training. For a while, payments were made in kind using goods that were in short supply in East Germany, such as oranges , bananas , coffee and medical drugs. The average prisoner was worth around 4,000 DM worth of goods. Ultimately
1470-713: The 1987–88 season . When the Deutsche Eishockey Liga replaced the Bundesliga in 1994 , BSC Preussen continued playing there. In 1995–96 they played as Preussen Devils before changing their name to Berlin Capitals for the following season . The club was relegated in 2002 . Due to financial difficulties, the club immediately dropped to the Regionalliga , the fourth level of German ice hockey. After just one season, BC Preussen won promotion to
1575-699: The Berlin Airlift . In May 1949, the Soviets lifted the blockade, and West Berlin as a separate city with its own jurisdiction was maintained. Following the Berlin Blockade, normal contacts between East and West Berlin resumed. This was temporary until talks were resumed. In 1952, the East German government began sealing its borders, further isolating West Berlin. As a direct result, electrical grids were separated and phone lines were cut. The Volkspolizei and Soviet military personnel also continued
1680-960: The Bundestag in Bonn by 22 non-voting delegates chosen by the House of Representatives. Similarly, the Senate (the city's executive) sent four non-voting delegates to the Bundesrat . In addition, when the first direct elections to the European Parliament were held in 1979, West Berlin's three members were instead indirectly elected by the House of Representatives. However, as West German citizens , West Berliners were able to stand for election in West Germany. For example, Social Democrat Willy Brandt , who eventually became Chancellor,
1785-545: The Eastern Bloc , since governments of these countries held the view that West Germany was not authorized to issue legal papers for West Berliners. Since West Berlin was not a sovereign state, it did not issue passports. Instead, West Berliners were issued with "auxiliary identity cards" by the West Berlin authorities. These differed visually from the regular West German identity cards, with green bindings instead of
1890-655: The Federal Republic of Germany . The West German Federal Government, as well as the governments of most western nations, considered East Berlin to be a "separate entity" from East Germany, and while the Western Allies later opened embassies in East Berlin, they recognised the city only as the seat of government of the GDR, not as its capital . Communist countries, however, did not recognise West Berlin as part of West Germany and usually described it as
1995-693: The Soviet Union and other Eastern Bloc countries. However, West Berlin de facto aligned itself politically with the FRG from May 1949 and was thereafter treated as a de facto city-state of that country. After 1949, it was directly or indirectly represented in the institutions of the FRG, and most of its residents were citizens of the FRG. West Berlin was formally controlled by the Western Allies and entirely surrounded by East Berlin and East Germany. West Berlin had great symbolic significance during
2100-483: The de facto 11th state of West Germany and was depicted on maps published in the West as being a part of West Germany. There was freedom of movement (to the extent allowed by geography) between West Berlin and West Germany . There were no separate immigration regulations for West Berlin, all immigration rules for West Germany being followed in West Berlin. West German entry visas issued to visitors were stamped with "for
2205-714: The rapprochement between the two German states in the 1970s. Additional border crossings for so-called kleine Grenzverkehr – " small border traffic ", essentially for West German day trippers – were opened at various locations along the border. By 1982, there were 19 border crossings: six roads, three autobahns, eight railway lines plus the Elbe river and the Mittellandkanal . Road crossing (East/West checkpoints, from north to south) Railway crossing Water crossing The largest crossing point or Grenzübergangsstelle (GÜSt) between East and West Germany
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#17327800245372310-536: The Accords also included a provision on freedom of movement that was to lead to the regime's authority being increasingly undermined. As East German citizens learned about this provision – which was not publicised by the GDR's state-controlled media – an increasing number sought to use it to emigrate. They applied for exit visas, citing Helsinki in their applications. The numbers were relatively small at first, averaging around 7,200 first-time applications and
2415-488: The Basic Law as binding law superior to Berlin state law (Article 1, clauses 2 and 3). However, that became statutory law only on 1 September and only with the inclusion of the western Allied provision according to which Art. 1, clauses 2 and 3, were deferred for the time being; the clauses became valid law only on 3 October 1990 (the day of Germany's unification). It stated: Article 87 is interpreted as meaning that during
2520-627: The British or American sectors after 1945, so that parts of West Berlin came to be surrounded by East Germany Furthermore, the Gatow/Staaken exchange in August 1945 resulted in the geographically western half of Berlin-Staaken, which was located in the western outskirts of the city, becoming de jure Soviet occupied. However, the de facto administration remained with the Borough of Spandau in
2625-584: The British sector. Therefore, all inhabitants of Staaken could vote in West Berlin's city state elections in 1948 and 1950. On 1 February 1951, East German Volkspolizei surprised the people of western Staaken by occupying the area and ended its administration by the Spandau Borough; instead, western Staaken became an exclave of the Soviet occupied borough Berlin-Mitte in the city centre. However, on 1 June 1952, western Staaken's de facto administration
2730-540: The British sector: In the French sector: West Berlin's border was identical to the municipal boundary of Berlin as defined in the Greater Berlin Act of 1920 and amended in 1938, and the border between the Soviet sector and the French, British, and American sectors respectively, which followed the boundaries of Berlin administrative boroughs as defined in the same years. Another amendment was added in 1945 at
2835-536: The Cold War, as it was widely considered by westerners an "island of freedom ." It was heavily subsidized by West Germany as a "showcase of the West." A wealthy city, West Berlin was noted for its distinctly cosmopolitan character, and as a centre of education, research and culture. With about two million inhabitants, West Berlin had the largest population of any city in Germany during the Cold War era. West Berlin
2940-439: The East German government, border guards would calculate the travel duration from the time of entry and exit of the transit route. Excessive time spent for transit travel could arouse their suspicion and prompt questioning or additional checking by the border guards. Western coaches could stop only at dedicated service areas since the East German government was concerned that East Germans might potentially use coaches to escape into
3045-672: The East German population coming to demand a general right to emigrate. A Central Committee report prepared in 1988 warned that even Party members were not sufficiently motivated to oppose emigration: The necessary commitment to preventing attempts to emigrate is not yet present in many Party branches, workplaces and [ FDGB ] collectives, or amongst citizens. The required prevailing atmosphere of opposition to these phenomena has not yet been achieved. Even Party members, FDGB functionaries or brigade leaders sometimes state that they fail to understand why these citizens are not permitted to emigrate. The regime sought to dissuade would-be émigrés through
3150-628: The Federal Republic of Germany, including the State of Berlin", in German " für die Bundesrepublik Deutschland einschl. [einschließlich] des Landes Berlin ", prompting complaints from the Soviet Union. However, this wording remained on the visas throughout the rest of the entire period of West Berlin's existence. West Berlin remained under military occupation until 3 October 1990, the day of unification of East Germany, East and West Berlin with
3255-496: The GDR's development. Experience shows that the current repertoire of solutions (improved travel possibilities, expatriation of applicants, etc.) have not brought the desired results, but rather the opposite." The agitation for emigration, the report concluded presciently, "threatens to undermine beliefs in the correctness of the Party's policies." In addition to the emigration programme, East German citizens could also emigrate through
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3360-544: The GDR), replacing the formerly used term Demokratisches Berlin , or simply "Berlin", by East Germany, and "Berlin (Ost)" by the West German Federal government. Other names used by West German media included "Ost-Berlin", "Ostberlin", or "Ostsektor." These different naming conventions for the divided parts of Berlin, when followed by individuals, governments, or media, commonly indicated their political leanings, with
3465-607: The Oberliga where they played the 2003–04 season. Due to renewed financial problems, the club entered a cooperation with Berliner Schlittschuhclub in 2004 and played the 2004–05 Oberliga season as BSC Preussen , before folding due to bankruptcy. A successor club was formed in 2004, the Eishockey-Club Charlottenburg Preussen Juniors Berlin ( ECC Preussen Juniors Berlin ), renamed to ECC Preussen Berlin in 2012. They won
3570-530: The Regionalliga multiple times, played several seasons in the Oberliga and folded after bankruptcy in 2020. This European ice hockey team-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . West Berlin West Berlin ( German : Berlin (West) or West-Berlin , German pronunciation: [ˈvɛstbɛʁˌliːn] ) was a political enclave which comprised
3675-493: The Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here to this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall! On 9 November 1989, the Wall was opened, and the two parts of the city were once again physically—though at this point not legally—united. The Two Plus Four Treaty , signed by the two German states and the four wartime allies, paved the way for German reunification and an end to
3780-402: The Soviets also informally allowed road and rail access between West Berlin and the western parts of Germany (see section on traffic). At first, this arrangement was intended to be of a temporary administrative nature, with all parties declaring that Germany and Berlin would soon be reunited. However, as the relations between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union soured and the Cold War began,
3885-549: The Soviets would accept the offer because East Germany would lose important industry, but hoped that making the proposal would reduce tensions between the western and eastern blocs, and perhaps hurt relations between the USSR and East Germany if they disagreed on accepting the offer. While the Kennedy administration seriously considered the idea, it did not make the proposal to the Soviet Union. NATO also took an increased interest in
3990-432: The Wall was built, East Germany wanted to control Western Allied patrols upon entering or leaving East Berlin, a practice that the Western Allies regarded as unacceptable. After protests to the Soviets, the patrols continued uncontrolled on both sides, with the tacit agreement that the western Allies would not use their patrolling privileges for helping Easterners to flee to the West. In many ways, West Berlin functioned as
4095-529: The West German Bundesgrenzschutz and Customs to maintain a corresponding checkpoint near Helmstedt . Codenamed Checkpoint Alpha , this was the first of three Allied checkpoints on the road to Berlin. The others were Checkpoint Bravo , where the autobahn crossed from East Germany into West Berlin, and most famous of all, Checkpoint Charlie , the only place where non-Germans could cross by road or foot from West to East Berlin. On
4200-510: The West. On 1 September 1951, East Germany, because of a shortage in foreign currencies , started to levy road tolls on cars using the transit routes. At first, the toll amounted to 10 Ostmark per passenger car and 10 to 50 for trucks, depending on size. Ostmarks had to be exchanged into Deutsche Mark at a rate of 1:1. On 30 March 1955, East Germany raised the toll for passenger cars to 30 Deutsche Marks, but after West German protests, in June of
4305-405: The Western Allies' occupation of West Berlin. On 3 October 1990—the day Germany was officially reunified—East and West Berlin formally reunited as the city of Berlin, which then joined the enlarged Federal Republic as a city-state along the lines of the existing West German city-states of Bremen and Hamburg . Walter Momper , the mayor of West Berlin, became the first mayor of the reunified city in
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4410-550: The administration of four Allies (the United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union , and France) until a German government "acceptable to all parties" could be established. The territory of Germany, as it existed in 1937, would be reduced by most of Eastern Germany thus creating the former eastern territories of Germany . The remaining territory would be divided into four zones, each administered by one of
4515-431: The airlift. Travelling to and from West Berlin by road or train always required passing through East German border checks, since West Berlin was an enclave surrounded by East Germany and East Berlin. On 2 October 1967, six years after the Wall was constructed, tram tracks in West Berlin were removed because the authorities wanted to promote car usage, meaning that the tram system remaining today runs almost entirely within
4620-483: The approval of the city's legislature. The ambiguous legal status of the city, then still legally styled as Greater Berlin (although technically only comprising the western sectors), meant that West Berliners were not eligible to vote in federal elections. In their notification of permission of 12 May 1949 the three western military governors for Germany explained their proviso in No. 4, as follows: A third reservation concerns
4725-444: The area within the state borders. It was not until November 1964 that they were allowed to visit the West at all, and even then only pensioners were allowed. This gave rise to a joke that only in East Germany did people look forward to old age. East German pensioners were able to visit the West for up to four weeks in a year, but were not permitted to take more than a token 10 East German marks with them, requiring them to depend on
4830-642: The border between the British sector of Berlin (ceding West-Staaken ) and the Soviet zone (ceding the Seeburg Salient ) so that the Wehrmacht airfield at Berlin-Gatow became part of the British sector and the airfield at Berlin-Staaken became part of the Soviet sector. The resulting borderline was further complicated with a lot of geographical oddities, including a number of exclaves and enclaves that Greater Berlin had inside some neighbouring municipalities since 1920, all of which happened to become part of
4935-445: The border resulted in the severing of 32 railway lines, three autobahns, 31 main roads, eight primary roads, about 60 secondary roads and thousands of lanes and cart tracks. The number of crossing points was reduced to three air corridors, three road corridors, two railway lines and two river connections giving transit access to Berlin, plus a handful of additional crossing points for freight traffic. The situation improved somewhat after
5040-537: The centre-right Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung using "Ost-Berlin" and the centre-left Süddeutsche Zeitung using "Ostberlin." After the Berlin Wall was constructed in 1961, West German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer suggested to U.S. President John F. Kennedy that the United States propose a swap of West Berlin with Thuringia and parts of Saxony and Mecklenburg ; the city's population would have been relocated to West Germany. Adenauer did not believe that
5145-489: The city, but was subjected to numerous inspections and petty restrictions by the East German authorities. Rail traffic was excruciatingly slow; locomotives and train crews had to be changed at the border, the East German Transport Police ( Trapos ) carried out inspections using sniffer dogs to uncover stowaways, passports and visas had to be processed at border stations and the condition of the track
5250-463: The commanders-in-chief rejected a bill, it did not become law in West Berlin; this, for example, was the case with West German laws on military duty. West Berlin was run by the elected Governing Mayor and Senate seated at Rathaus Schöneberg . The Governing Mayor and Senators (ministers) had to be approved by the Western Allies and thus derived their authority from the occupying forces, not from their electoral mandate. The Soviets unilaterally declared
5355-556: The country. In 1975, however, East Germany signed up to the Helsinki Accords , a pan-European treaty to improve relations between the countries of Europe. The Accords were regarded by the East German government as being hugely important. GDR leader Erich Honecker commented that the Accords "fixed" the "territorial and political outcomes" of the Second World War, in effect ratifying the division of Germany. However,
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#17327800245375460-466: The day Germany was officially reunified , East and West Berlin united, joined the Federal Republic as a Stadtstaat (city-state) and eventually became the capital of Germany again. The London Protocol of 1944 and the Potsdam Agreement established the legal framework for the occupation of Germany in the wake of World War II. According to these agreements, Germany would be formally under
5565-409: The defining features of the city. The Western Allies remained the ultimate political authorities in West Berlin. All legislation of the House of Representatives, whether of the West Berlin legislature or adopted federal law, only applied under the proviso of confirmation by the three Western Allied commanders-in-chief. If they approved a bill, it was enacted as part of West Berlin's statutory law. If
5670-403: The different means of crossing the border had its own complications. Only aircraft of the three Western Allies were allowed to fly to or from West Berlin ; civilian traffic was principally served by Air France , British European Airways (later British Airways ) and Pan Am . River traffic was hugely important to the survival of West Berlin, conveying around five million tons of cargo a year to
5775-509: The difficulty in getting approval for leave from employers. Those who could travel were only free to go to "fraternal Socialist states" – Bulgaria , Czechoslovakia , Hungary , Poland , Romania , and the Soviet Union (though Poland was taken off the list after 1981 to prevent the spread of the Solidarity trade unionism "infection"). Even then, they had to pay high prices to stay in second-class accommodation and were often shocked by
5880-637: The establishment of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) on 23 May and of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) on 7 October. Under Article 127 of the Basic Law (or constitution) of the Federal Republic, provision was made for federal laws to be extended to Greater Berlin (as Berlin was called during the 1920 expansion of its municipal boundaries ) as well as Baden , Rhineland-Palatinate and Württemberg-Hohenzollern within one year of its promulgation. However, because
5985-578: The former East Berlin. As there were no dedicated walled-off-road corridors between West Germany and West Berlin under West German jurisdiction, travellers needed to pass through East Germany. A valid passport was required for citizens of West Germany and other western nationals to be produced at East German border checks. West Berliners could get admission only through their identity cards (see above). For travel from West Berlin to Denmark, Sweden and West Germany via dedicated East German transit routes (German: Transitstrecke ), East German border guards issued
6090-505: The four allied countries. Berlin, which was surrounded by the Soviet zone of occupation —newly established in most of Middle Germany —would be similarly divided, with the Western Allies occupying an enclave consisting of the western parts of the city. According to the agreement, the occupation of Berlin could end only as a result of a quadripartite agreement. The Western Allies were guaranteed three air corridors to their sectors of Berlin, and
6195-668: The governance of Berlin specified that the Western Allies were to have access to the city via defined air, road, rail and river links. This was mostly respected by the Soviets and East Germans, albeit with periodic interruptions and harassment of travellers. The worst disruption to this was in 1948 during the Berlin Blockade when supplies could only be brought in by air – the famous Berlin Airlift – although Allied military convoys could pass through East Germany en route to Berlin. The border could be crossed legally only through
6300-459: The granting of 4,600 exit visas annually during the late 1970s. By the late 1980s numbers had snowballed to over 100,000 applications with around 15,000–25,000 exit visas being granted annually. Legal emigration posed a dilemma for the regime; although it provided a safety valve of sorts and allowed East Germany to portray itself as adhering to the Helsinki norms, it ran the risk of
6405-642: The grey standard, they did not show the "Federal Eagle" or coat of arms , and contained no indications as to the issuing State. However, they did have a statement that the holder of the document was a German citizen. From 11 June 1968, East Germany made it mandatory that West Berlin and West German "transit passengers" obtain a transit visa , issued upon entering East Germany, because under its second constitution East Germany considered West Germans and West Berliners foreigners. Since identity cards had no pages to stamp visas, issuers of East German visas stamped their visas onto separate leaflets which were loosely stuck into
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#17327800245376510-524: The grounds that they were unfit to bring up children. The heavily politicised East German law code was used to punish those who continued to apply for emigration despite repeated rejections. Those who repeatedly submitted emigration applications faced charges of "impeding ... the state and social activity". If they sought assistance from contacts in the West, such as relatives or West German state bodies, they were guilty of "illegal contact" or "traitorous information transfer or activities as an agent." Criticising
6615-470: The identity cards, which, until the mid-1980s, were little booklets. Although the West German government subsidized visa fees, they were still payable by individual travellers. In order to enter visa-requiring Western countries, such as the US, West Berliners commonly used West German passports. However, for countries which did not require stamped visas for entry, including Switzerland, Austria, and many members of
6720-443: The inner German border to be a somewhat disturbing experience. Jan Morris wrote: Travelling from west to east through [the inner German border] was like entering a drab and disturbing dream, peopled by all the ogres of totalitarianism, a half-lit world of shabby resentments, where anything could be done to you, I used to feel, without anybody ever hearing of it, and your every step was dogged by watchful eyes and mechanisms. Each of
6825-639: The interim. City-wide elections in December 1990 resulted in the first "all Berlin" mayor being elected to take office in January 1991, with the separate offices of mayors in East and West Berlin expiring by that time, and Eberhard Diepgen (a former mayor of West Berlin) became the first elected mayor of a reunited Berlin. West Berlin comprised the following boroughs ( Bezirke ): In the American sector: In
6930-413: The joint administration of Germany and Berlin broke down. Soon, Soviet-occupied Berlin and western-occupied Berlin had separate city administrations. In 1948, the Soviets tried to force the Western Allies out of Berlin by imposing a land blockade on the western sectors—the Berlin Blockade . The West responded by using its air corridors for supplying their part of the city with food and other goods through
7035-420: The late 1980s, ordinary East Germans were only permitted to travel to the West on "urgent family business" such as the marriage, serious illness, or death of a close relative. In February 1986, the regime relaxed the definition of "urgent family business", though it still required travellers to leave behind "collateral" (in effect, a hostage) such as a spouse, child, or other close relative. This massively increased
7140-460: The local police on arrival, remaining within a specified area for a specified period and obtaining an exit visa from the police on departure. East Germans were subjected to far more stringent restrictions. The East German constitution of 1949 granted citizens a theoretical right to leave the country, though it was hardly respected in practice. Even this limited right was removed in the constitution of 1968 which confined citizens' freedom of movement to
7245-418: The number of citizens able to travel to the West. The number of legal East German border-crossers rose from 66,000 in 1985 to 573,000 in 1986, 1.2 million in 1987 and 2.2 million in 1988. The "pensioner traffic" increased greatly as well, from 1.6 million a year in 1985 to 3.8 million in 1987. And more than 99.5% of the border-crossers returned home. The relaxation of the border restrictions
7350-471: The obstinate commitment of the applicants, repeatedly forced the [East German] power apparatus to make concessions on travel and emigration issues in order to prevent ... massive, uncontrolled eruptions." This was to have important consequences at the end of the 1980s. A report for the Central Committee's security section noted: "The emigration problem is confronting us with a fundamental problem of
7455-450: The occupation of Berlin could be ended only by a quadripartite agreement, Berlin remained an occupied territory under the formal sovereignty of the allies. Hence, the Basic Law was not fully applicable to West Berlin. On 4 August 1950, the House of Representatives , the city's legislature, passed a new constitution, declaring Berlin to be a state of the Federal Republic and the provisions of
7560-496: The occupation of East Berlin at an end along with the rest of East Germany. This move was, however, not recognised by the Western Allies, who continued to view all of Berlin as a jointly occupied territory belonging to neither of the two German states. This view was supported by the continued practice of patrols of all four sectors by soldiers of all four occupying powers. Thus, occasionally Western Allied soldiers were on patrol in East Berlin as were Soviet soldiers in West Berlin. After
7665-580: The other side of the border at Marienborn, over 1,000 East German officials worked around the clock to process travellers. A large proportion of the staff were officers of the Stasi , the much-feared secret police, although they wore the uniforms of the regular Grenztruppen . The real Grenztruppen were also present to provide military backup, as were East German customs officers and Soviet military officials who were responsible for inspecting Allied military vehicles entering East Germany. The main functions of
7770-583: The participation of Greater Berlin in the Federation. We interpret the effect of Articles 23 and 144 (2) of the Basic Law as constituting acceptance of our previous request that while Berlin may not be accorded voting membership in the Bundestag or Bundesrat nor be governed by the Federation she may, nevertheless, designate a small number of representatives to the meetings of those legislative bodies. Consequently, West Berliners were indirectly represented in
7875-412: The police for a passport and exit visa and to undergo close questioning about their reasons for wanting to travel. An application to travel had to be submitted well in advance of the planned departure. They also had to submit an application and undergo a personal evaluation at their workplace. Their employer would then submit a statement and various forms to the police. Applicants were left in the dark about
7980-607: The political system was a crime of "public disparagement". Over 10,000 applicants were arrested by the Stasi between the 1970s and 1989 on such charges. Such repressive treatment may well have reduced the number of people who were willing to apply for an exit visa; however, it also provoked the creation of a small but vocal pro-reform movement willing to directly and publicly challenge the regime. The government found it difficult to deal with such people; as one historian comments, "the scale and spontaneity of demonstrative actions, and
8085-416: The poor living conditions, particularly in the Soviet Union, which GDR propaganda had promoted as "the most modern and progressive state in the world." The GDR did not encourage emigration, perhaps not surprisingly considering that the inner German border fortifications and Berlin Wall had been erected specifically to stop emigration. There was no formal legal basis under which a citizen could emigrate from
8190-610: The process of blocking all the roads leading away from the city, resulting in several armed standoffs and at least one skirmish with the French Gendarmerie and the Bundesgrenzschutz that June. However, the culmination of the schism did not occur until 1961 with the construction of the Berlin Wall . From the legal theory followed by the Western Allies, the occupation of most of Germany ended in 1949 with
8295-583: The ransoms first began, they were arranged between two lawyers, East German Wolfgang Vogel and West German Jürgen Stange. The initially secret arrangement was revealed by Rainer Barzel , the Federal Minister for All-German Affairs at the time, who wrote in his memoirs (published in 1978): "The price for the prisoners was determined on an individual basis. It was fixed according to the prisoner's human and political weight. Those serving life sentences cost more." The prices ranged from around 1,875 DM for
8400-462: The same year, it changed it back to the previous rate. Crossing the inner German border Crossing the inner German border between East and West Germany remained possible throughout the Cold War ; it was never entirely sealed in the fashion of the border between the two Koreas , though there were severe restrictions on the movement of East German citizens. The post-war agreements on
8505-507: The semi-secret route of being ransomed to the West German government . Between 1964 and 1989, 33,755 political prisoners were ransomed. A further 2,087 prisoners were released to the West under an amnesty in 1972. Another 215,000 people, including 2,000 children cut off from their parents, were allowed to leave East Germany to rejoin their families. In exchange, West Germany paid over 3.4 billion DM – nearly $ 2.3 billion at 1990 prices – in goods and hard currency. The annual ransom fees became such
8610-492: The short code 0372. Conversely, those made to West Berlin from East Berlin only required the short code 849. In order to reduce eastern wiretapping of telecommunications between West Berlin and West Germany, microwave radio relay connections were built, which transmitted telephone calls between antenna towers in West Germany and West Berlin by radio. Two such towers were built, one antenna in Berlin- Wannsee and later
8715-409: The specific issue related to West Berlin, and drafted plans to ensure to defend the city against an eventual attack from the East. A tripartite planning group known as LIVE OAK , working together with NATO, was entrusted with potential military responses to any crisis. On 26 June 1963, President Kennedy visited West Berlin. On his triumphant tour, cheered by hundred of thousands of West Berliners in
8820-426: The staff at Marienborn and other border crossing points were to combat smuggling, to "defend the state border", and to stop any items deemed politically or socially unacceptable from entering or leaving the country. A wide variety of items were forbidden to be imported or exported. Western magazines and newspapers, recorded materials, films, radios and medicines were among the more predictable prohibited items, though it
8925-491: The status of West Berlin. While many restrictions remained in place, it also made it easier for West Berliners to travel to East Germany and it simplified the regulations for Germans travelling along the autobahn transit routes. At the Brandenburg Gate in 1987, U.S. President Ronald Reagan provided a challenge to the then Soviet leader: General Secretary Gorbachev , if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for
9030-663: The streets, he stopped at the Congress Hall, near the Brandenburg Gate , and at Checkpoint Charlie , before delivering at West Berlin's city hall a speech, which became famous for its phrase " Ich bin ein Berliner " and a hallmark of America's solidarity with the city. The Four Power Agreement on Berlin (September 1971) and the Transit Agreement (May 1972) helped to significantly ease tensions over
9135-400: The success of their application until the day before their departure. They were required to go again to the police and present various items of paperwork before obtaining a passport and visa, for which a 60 DM fee was charged – a substantial fraction of an East German's monthly salary. The odds were against successful applications, as only around 40,000 a year were approved . Refusal
9240-529: The support of relatives, churches, and the West German government. As they were retired, they were seen by the East German government as economically unimportant and no great loss if they defected. The vast majority, though, chose to return home at the end of their stay. Not until 1972 were younger East Germans permitted to travel to the West, though few did so until the mid-1980s. They were rarely permitted to take their own car but had to go by train or bus instead. A lengthy process had to be endured to register with
9345-470: The then European Economic Community , including the United Kingdom , West Berlin identity cards were also acceptable for entry. Active immigration and asylum politics in West Berlin triggered waves of immigration in the 1960s and 1970s. As of 2017, Berlin was home to at least 178,000 Turkish and Turkish German residents, making it the largest Turkish community outside of Turkey. West Berlin
9450-1351: The transit routes, and occasional traffic checkpoints would check for violators. There were four transit routes between West Berlin and West Germany: The latter three routes used autobahns built during the Nazi era. They left West Berlin at Checkpoint Dreilinden , also called Checkpoint Bravo (W)/ Potsdam -Drewitz (E). Transit routes to Poland were via today's A 11 to Nadrensee -Pomellen (East Germany, GDR)/ Kołbaskowo (Kolbitzow) (PL), eastwards via today's A 12 to Frankfurt upon Oder (GDR)/ Słubice (PL), or southeastwards via today's A 13 and A 15 to Forst in Lusatia/Baršć (GDR)/ Zasieki (Berge) (PL). Additional routes led to Denmark and Sweden by ferry between Warnemünde (GDR) and Gedser (DK) and by ferry between Sassnitz (GDR) and Rønne (DK) or Trelleborg (S). Routes to Czechoslovakia were via Schmilka (GDR)/ Hřensko (Herrnskretschen) (ČSSR) and via Fürstenau (a part of today's Geising ) (GDR)/ Cínovec (Cinvald/Böhmisch Zinnwald) (ČSSR). The transit routes were also used for East German domestic traffic. This meant that transit passengers could potentially meet with East Germans and East Berliners at restaurants at motorway rest stops. Since such meetings were deemed illegal by
9555-562: The transitional period Berlin shall possess none of the attributes of a twelfth Land. The provision of this Article concerning the Basic Law will only apply to the extent necessary to prevent a conflict between this Law and the Berlin Constitution.... Thus, civic liberties and personal rights (except for the privacy of telecommunications) guaranteed by the Basic Law were also valid in West Berlin. In addition, West German federal statutes could only take effect in West Berlin with
9660-581: The undersides of vehicles to be scrutinised. Probes were used to investigate the chassis and even the fuel tank, where an escapee might be concealed, and vehicles could be partially dismantled in on-site garages. At Marienborn there was even a mortuary garage where coffins could be checked to confirm that the occupants really were dead. From the late 1970s, East Germany also installed concealed gamma-ray detectors ("gamma guns") at border crossings which used radioactive caesium-137 sources to detect people concealed inside vehicles. The discovery of this practice caused
9765-502: The western occupying powers. Most Westerners called the Western sectors "Berlin" unless further distinction was necessary. The West German Federal government officially called West Berlin "Berlin (West)", although it also used the hyphenated "West-Berlin", whereas the East German government commonly referred to it as "Westberlin." Starting from 31 May 1961, East Berlin was officially called Berlin, Hauptstadt der DDR (Berlin, Capital of
9870-493: The western part of Berlin from 1948 until 1990, during the Cold War . Although West Berlin lacked any sovereignty and was under military occupation until German reunification in 1990, the territory was claimed by the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany), despite being entirely surrounded by the German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany). The legality of this claim was contested by
9975-411: Was 160 km (100 mi) east and north of the inner German border and only accessible by land from West Germany by narrow rail and highway corridors . It consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors established in 1945. The Berlin Wall , built in 1961, physically separated West Berlin from its East Berlin and East German surroundings until it fell in 1989. On 3 October 1990,
10080-494: Was also a destination for many people fleeing East Germany both before and after the construction of the Berlin Wall. As many immigrants from East Germany did not intend to stay in Berlin , flights – the only option for those people to reach West Germany without coming into contact with East German authorities – were subsidized by the West German government despite being operated only by companies registered in and owned by nationals of
10185-479: Was at Marienborn on the Hanover–Berlin autobahn. It was originally a set of simple huts straddling the border, where British and Soviet military police checked travellers between the eastern and western zones. In 1971–72 the East German government expanded it into a 35 hectares (86 acres) complex through which 34.6 million travellers passed between 1985 and 1989. The British, French and Americans worked alongside
10290-476: Was completely integrated with West Germany's, using the same postal code system. West Berlin was also integrated into the West German telephone network, using the same international dialling code as West Germany, +49 , with the area code 0311, later changed to 030 . Unlike West Germany, from where calls to East Berlin were made using the prefix 00372 (international access code 00, East German country code 37, area code 2), calls from West Berlin required only
10395-533: Was effective nonetheless; during the 28 years of operation of the Marienborn complex, no successful escapes were recorded. West and East Germans were treated very differently when entering or leaving East Germany. West Germans were able to cross the border relatively freely to visit relatives, though they had to go through numerous bureaucratic formalities imposed by the East German government. These included applying in advance for permission, registering with
10500-429: Was elected via his party's list of candidates. The West German government considered all West Berliners as well as all citizens of the GDR to be citizens of West Germany. Male residents of West Berlin were exempt from the Federal Republic's compulsory military service. This exemption made the city a popular destination for West German young people, which resulted in a flourishing counterculture , which in turn became one of
10605-410: Was placed with neighbouring East German Falkensee in the East German district Nauen . West Berlin had its own postal administration first called Deutsche Post Berlin (1947–1955) and then Deutsche Bundespost Berlin , separate from West Germany's Deutsche Bundespost , and issuing its own postage stamps until 1990. However, the separation was merely symbolic; in reality, West Berlin's postal service
10710-467: Was quite often arbitrary, depending on the goodwill of local officials. A few categories of citizens were permitted relatively free travel. Members of the Party elite and cultural ambassadors such as sportspeople, singers, film directors, and writers were frequently given permission to travel, as were essential transport workers such as barge crewmen, railway workers, and truck drivers. However, they were not permitted to take their families with them. Until
10815-567: Was said to have been motivated by a desire on the part of the East German leadership to reduce their citizens' desire to travel and shrink the number applying to emigrate. In practice, however, it had exactly the opposite effect. An April 1988 article in The Washington Post wondered prophetically whether the policy would lead to East Germany "fac[ing] the prospect that the freer travel policy could be destabilizing by whetting desires for additional liberties." Even if East Germans got
10920-412: Was so poor that trains were limited to a maximum speed of 70 kilometres per hour (43 miles per hour). Road crossings were fairly straightforward but slow because of the extensive border formalities and inspections. Drivers were required to stay on designated transit routes across East Germany. Before 1952, the inner German border could be crossed at almost any point along its length. The fortification of
11025-502: Was unclear why items such as eels and asparagus could not be brought across the border. The prevention of escapes was a key priority at crossing points such as Marienborn. It was not possible to simply drive through the gap in the border fence that existed at crossing points, as the East Germans installed high-impact vehicle barriers mounted at chest height. These could (and did) kill drivers who attempted to ram through them. As
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