Why did people flee from East Germany to West Germany?

Escapees had various motives for attempting to flee East Germany. The vast majority had an essentially economic motive: they wished to improve their living conditions and opportunities in the West. Some fled for political reasons, but many were impelled to leave by specific social and political events.

What happened to West Germany what happened to East Germany?

After World War II, defeated Germany was divided into Soviet, American, British and French zones of occupation. The city of Berlin, though technically part of the Soviet zone, was also split, with the Soviets taking the eastern part of the city.

Why did so many East Germans move to West Germany in the 1950s?

The brain drain: throughout the 1950s thousands of East Germans had fled to the West through Berlin, leaving behind the harsh political climate and economic hardship of life under communism. People living under communism in the Eastern sector could visit the West and see what capitalism offered.

Was West Germany East or communist?

After World War II the country of Germany ended up dividing into two separate countries. East Germany became a communist country under the control of the Soviet Union. At the same time West Germany was a democratic country and allied with Britain, France, and the United States.

How did West Berlin connect to West Germany?

By rail, the western locomotives had to be replaced by East German locomotives at the border. By air, only carriers of the western Allies were allowed to make the West Germany to West Berlin trip. That meant Air France, British Airways, and Pan Am in the pre- Lokerbie days.

What do you think was the best method to leave East Germany and escape to West Berlin?

Escape from East Germany was not impossible, however: From 1961 until the wall came down in 1989, more than 5,000 East Germans (including some 600 border guards) managed to cross the border by jumping out of windows adjacent to the wall, climbing over the barbed wire, flying in hot air balloons, crawling through the …

When did Germany separate into East and West?

In 1949, Germany formally split into two independent nations: the Federal Republic of Germany (FDR or West Germany), allied to the Western democracies, and the German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany), allied to the Soviet Union.

How did West Berlin survive in East Germany?

The West responded by using its air corridors for supplying their part of the city with food and other goods through the Berlin Airlift. In May 1949, the Soviets lifted the blockade, and West Berlin as a separate city with its own jurisdiction was maintained.

What was the conflict between East and West Germany?

Berlin crisis of 1961, Cold War conflict between the Soviet Union and the United States concerning the status of the divided German city of Berlin. It culminated in the construction of the Berlin Wall in August 1961.

Should young people in Germany leave the east for the west?

Even today, if you are a young person in eastern Germany and want a traditional, well-paid career in a large corporation, you have to leave your hometown and go west. In the 90s, most people in the east had quite different existential problems.

What happened to the people of East Germany after the Wall fell?

Thousands of companies were privatised within four years of the wall falling – millions lost their jobs, and millions more migrated to the west in search of better paid work. In 1994, only 18\% of East German employees still worked at the same place as they had in 1991, according to the historian Ilko-Sascha Kowalczuk.

What happened to Germany’s economy after reunification?

Twenty-five years after reunification, Germans in the east still spent 79 percent less on consumer goods than their counterparts in the west. ( The Guardian) Since German reunification, the former West German state has transferred around $2 trillion in economic aid to help the struggling former East German state.

How do East Germans feel about their personal life?

In 1991, only 15\% of east Germans felt happy about their personal life; in 2019, it was 59\%. These statistics are not as contradictory as they might first appear. For a long time, east Germans lacked the inner freedom, the time and simply the words to explain how the transformation of their world after 1989/90 affected them.