Why Was The Berlin Wall Constructed

The Berlin Wall divided Germany by its western and eastern provinces. The total length of the Berlin Wall was 91 miles (155 kilometers). The fact that it was said “no-one intended to build a wall” but exactly the opposite had been done raises questions about what the exact causes were to have reached this outcome . In this essay I will be focusing on two main reasons for why the Berlin Wall was built; mass exodus and lack of Western intervention.
A key argument in the building of the Berlin Wall was the massive brain-drain the GDR was facing. Mass exodus meant that there was a lack of manpower and skilled people in East Germany. Emigration concerns were closely linked to East Germany’s economy, which was already damaged during the war. A figure
The younger generation was clearly ‘blinded’ by the facade of western ‘shop‐window politics. It was here that young East Germans were coming across notions of the “golden West”. Many weren’t leaving East Germany purely for the reason that they did not agree with Soviet policies, but rather because they desired a better life in West Germany who were clearly enjoying the ‘economic miracle’ post-war. This prospect of a desire for a better life can be supported by the fact that between 1945 and the building of the Berlin Wall in 1961 3.5 million, or one in six, East Germans crossed the border to the West. West Germany's population grew from 47.3 to 56.2 million from 1948 to 1961, the GDR, decreased from 19.1 to 17.1 million. The act even had an official name: Republikflucht or ‘flight from the Republic. It was said by an official that “they are not fleeing but emigrating.” Thus, the prospect of the “golden West” seemed to accelerate the East Germany’s brain-drain. The Eastern brain‐drain forced the GDR into a struggle for survival since it was lacking the manpower needed to run the state. Professor H. of VEB Vakutronik noted sarcastically that the difference between capitalism and socialism was that “the capitalist