Abstract
The Cold War is considered by historians to be one of the most prominent social and political developments of the later Twentieth Century and served to form the political and economic alliances which impacted almost every aspect of modern life. The development of the Cold War can be traced back nearly a century, but the event that triggered the outbreak of the Cold War itself is believed to be the Berlin Blockade. This paper investigates the causes of the Berlin Blockade and how this event came to pass, with reflection on how the Berlin Blockade helped chart the development of the Cold War itself.

Tags:the, berlin, blockade

Abstract
This paper describes and analyzes the rise and fall of the Berlin Wall, the Cold War and Berlin as a divided city between Eastern and Western ideology. It also discusses associated events and includes an annotated bibliography.

From the Paper
"Berlin has been characterized as the flash-point of the entire Cold War which lasted from ... to ... and during which a divided Germany and a divided Berlin with its two halves separated by the infamous Berlin Wall symbolized the bipolar world. In January ... two of the four zones of Berlin, those of the British and the Americans, were united leaving the Soviet and French zones in an autonomous position. The American plans for a self-governing and financially self-supporting West Germany..."

Tags:Berlin Wall, Soviet Union, Cold War, United States, West Germany, East Germany, checkpoints

Abstract
The paper examines Brian S. Gunderson's article "Strategic Air Command's B-29's During the Berlin Airlift", which emphasizes the previously unacknowledged, but crucial role played by B-29s during the famous Berlin Blockade airlift. The paper asserts that although this is a valuable document in its detail and meticulous, step-by-step chronological unfolding of the events leading up to and after the airlift, Gunderson lacks engagement because of his failure to really make an argument about the significance of the airlift. The paper notes many aspects the author could have addressed that would have improved this work.

From the Paper
"Author and B-29 navigator from the 1948 28th Bomb Wing Brigadier General Brian S. Gunderson's article "Strategic Air Command's b-29's During the Berlin Airlift" appears to be a fairly straightforward account of the Berlin Blockade with an emphasis on the previously unacknowledged, but crucial role played by B-29s during the famous airlift. Gunderson was personally involved in the airlift, although his article takes a cooler, more dispassionate tone than other attempts to provide the reader with a gripping, involved, and 'grounds-eye' narrative of the events that transpired. His thesis, vaguely defined, seems to underline the significance of the airlift and the essential fellowship and hospitality of the British that enabled the airlift to be so successful. However, although a valuable document in its detail and meticulous, step-by-step chronological unfolding of the events leading up to and after the airlift, he lacks engagement with a central, driving thesis because of his failure to really make an argument about the significance of the airlift."

Tags:Cold, War, Berlin, Blockade

Abstract
This paper provides an overview of the historical and political events and decisions that led up to the building of the Berlin Wall. The writer describes how the wall was developed and how its presence influenced the residents of Berlin, the relations between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, and the international community. The paper concludes that while the Berlin Wall certainly represented the failure of Soviet-style Communism and the deprivation of human rights, it may well have served an important function in decreasing the likelihood of all-out war between East and West during its existence.

Outline:
Background and History - Postwar Geopolitical Conflict in Europe
The Evolution of The Berlin Wall
Erection of the Berlin Wall
Resolution of Issues
Retrospective Analysis and Conclusion

From the Paper
"Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the wall was systematically improved, evolving from what started out as a few strands of barbed wire into a fortified, state-of-the-art nearly completely impervious barrier that eventually incorporated 12-foot-high high, 4-foot-wide cement walls, sophisticated electronic controls, flood lights, minefields, guard dogs, listening devices intended to detect digging, and automatically triggered machine guns. As the wall grew, escape attempts became more and more sophisticated, ranging from jumping from windows of buildings on the Eastern side, tunneling underneath, and even the video-taped flight of East German citizens by light aircraft."

Tags:Truman NATO, Marshall Plan, nuclear weapon, Stalin Roosevelt aggression geopolitics Kennedy

Abstract
This paper deals with the redevelopment in Central Berlin after the fall of the Berlin Wall through the lens of architecture. The writer stresses that redevelopment projects like the one in Berlin should strive to reflect an accurate national past; they should be constructed with architecture that is composed of balanced narratives. At the same time, the projects afford Germany the ability to move forward through fashioning Berlin as the economic and cultural capital of Europe. The paper concludes with suggestions for redevelopment processes.

From the Paper
"While the capital's move back to Berlin was contentious, it was representative of a prevailing desire in German society to reassert the German nation as a world power. The architecture of the Spreebogen claimed to recall Germany's Golden Age in the late 19th and early 20th century and to eschew National Socialist designs. Germany saw itself as a victim as well as a perpetrator. It had suffered under the reign of the Soviet Union since the 1940s and could finally again assert its national legitimacy. It desired a capital district that would recall historic successes under leaders like Otto von Bismarck. Nonetheless, it has proved nearly impossible to ignore the National Socialist history in the capital district."

Tags:urban, history, environment, conciliatory, memorialization, meta-narrative, monumental

Abstract
Although the Berlin Wall was erected by the East German government in order to stop the mass exodus of refugees from East to West Germany, it acquired in the course of its twenty-eight-year life span symbolic meanings which transcended the pragmatic political intention behind its building. As a demarcation line between East and West, the Wall played a significant symbolic role in the "imaginative geography" of the Cold War, detente, and finally the collapse of the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe which brought to an end the dominance of a bipolar world system. This paper examines the significance of the Berlin wall from the eyes of author Roger Darton and his book, "Berlin Journal".

Abstract
This paper focuses on the Berlin Wall crisis. The paper explains that this event has been considered to be one of the most extensive feuds between two political factions in modern European history, spanning from the years 1961 to 1989. The paper continues on to assert that events during the twenty-eight years that the wall existed have forever changed the course of history and will remain in both history books and the memory of the people who experienced them. The paper concludes that the establishment of the Berlin Wall significantly impacted the people of Germany several ways including: psychologically, symbolically, and economically.

From the Paper
"Unlike most great walls in history of the world, the Berlin Wall was designed to keep its citizens in, not keep the enemies out. The USSR knew that in order for communism to work it would need full participation even from talented people; however, East Berliners desired to live in the west where the capitalistic form of government was treating its people well. For any East Berliner willing to climb the fence laid the "death strip", a small slice of land between the borders in which the communist guards would shoot on site any escapees. The entrapped living conditions suffered by East Berlin took a heavy psychological toll on its citizens. "

Tags:USSR, Soviet, armed, feud, political

Abstract
The paper attempts to show how for forty years, the Berlin Wall would represent the physical tensions and ideological distinctions between Soviet and Western ideologies. The paper looks back at the Potsdam Conference and how this resulted in Western occupiers creating West Germany and the Soviets establishing a Kremlin-sponsored state government in East Germany. The paper describes how East Germany became a puppet to the U.S.S.R.'s communist government and was harmed economically and diplomatically in its relations with the rest of the world. The paper discusses how West Germany, unlike East Germany, would accept responsibility for the atrocities committed by the Nazis before and during World War II. The paper clearly demonstrates how the erection of the Berlin Wall and East Germany would become noted symbols of Soviet repression and iron curtain imperialism.

From the Paper
"To the point, the end of World War II would be a pivotal time for the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union. Former partners in the defeat of Germany, they would now begin a struggle at defining the future of the Germany, Europe and, indeed, the world. However, these two world powers would have distinctly different views on how to do this, resulting in the division of Germany into East and West, as well as the alignment of the global community on either side of a long Cold War. Thus, in the period which would follow the second World War, East Germany and West Germany would be among the most significant national births to occur in a time global power re-distribution and the complex demarcation of international boundaries. Thus, these would be significant fronts in the Cold War that would shape the fate of the globe for nearly the remainder of the 20th century."

Tags:Potsdam, Conference, Soviet, Union, Communism, East, West, Germany

Abstract
This book report reviews Christopher Isherwood's book 'The Berlin Stories'. The paper highlights examples of the wild, decadent and colorful lifestyle in Berlin before World War II, by tracing the characters portrayed in 3 short stories, 'The Nowarks', 'Sally Bowles' and 'On Reugen Island' contained in this book.

From the Paper
"The story that best describes decadent or debauched behavior however is "Sally Bowles." The heroine encountered by Isherwood here is Sally Bowles, a 19-year-old English girl who works as a singer in The Lady Windermere, a cabaret. No doubt a colorful character, Sally exemplifies the wild and wicked lifestyle of her time. Sex for her was a mere trifle. She points out the men she sleeps with no hint of self-consciousness or shame. "That's the man I slept with last night. He makes love marvelously. He's an absolute genius at businesses and he's terribly rich." (Isherwood, 1963, p. 23). Seduction, fun and games, are all part of Sally's way of life as well as that of the people around her. "For heaven's sake, don't leave me alone with this man! Or he'll seduce me down the telephone. He's most terribly passionate" (Isherwood, 1963, p. 22)."

Tags:decadent, debauchery, Sex, money, drinking, cabarets, the, nightlife

Abstract
The paper relates that the book "The Fall of Berlin 1945" offers not only a detailed look at how and why Berlin fell in 1945, but also provides a historic look at warfare and the horrors of war. The paper looks at how Beevor's book includes scrupulous research, numerous maps and a clear understanding of the mechanics of war, giving the reader a comprehensive knowledge of the last days of the Third Reich. The paper is of the opinion that it is an excellent history book and should be considered in any study of World War II.

From the Paper
"Beevor's book opens with the desperate situation in Berlin in the last month of 1944, when bombing raids were common and the people's motto was simply to "Survive!" (Beevor 2). He shows how, through fear and desperation, society began to disintegrate and the Nazi stranglehold on the country began to release. The opening chapters follow the many battles and tactical maneuvers that led to the final fall of Berlin, including assessments of the armaments used to win the war. For example, Beevor writes of the Soviet tanks used in the Vistula, "The rapid advances of Zhukov's tank armies were partly due to the simplicity and robust construction of the T-34 tank and its broad tracks, which could cope with snow, ice, and mud" (Beevor 20). He also follows some of the most important military leaders in the war and shows how their decisions affected many of the decisive battles leading to the fall of Berlin."

Tags:Nazi, Third, Reich, battles, atrocities, fear, retribution