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Germany celebrates the 35th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

The Berlin Wall was overcome by courageous people in the GDR on 9 November 1989. Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz says the events of 35 years ago were a “pan-European victory”.  

09.11.2024
Thousands of people celebrate the opening of the border between East and West Germany in November 1989.
Thousands of people celebrate the opening of the border between East and West Germany in November 1989. © dpa

Berlin (d.de/dpa) – Berlin is set to commemorate the fall of the Berlin Wall 35 years ago in a variety of ways this Saturday. The Wall was overcome on 9 November 1989 by courageous people in the GDR, heralding the end of the division of Germany and paving the way for reunification. 

Tens of thousands of visitors are expected to attend a “festival of freedom” in Berlin. One key attraction is a huge open-air installation: 5,000 posters will be displayed in the city centre along a route which traces the line where the Wall once stood. Created at workshops organized by schools, parishes, associations and cultural projects, they combine the demands of the demonstrators in autumn 1989 with what people wish for today. In the evening, a concert is planned along the four-kilometre route: according to the organisers, 700 professional and amateur musicians will play the “soundtrack of freedom” on a number of different stages at the same time.  

On the 35th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz said this historical event was an outstanding example of European cohesion. Germany’s Central and Eastern European neighbours contributed to the fall of the Wall, said Scholz. “The victory of freedom in autumn 1989 was a pan-European victory,” said the Chancellor. 

9 November is a date steeped in history for Germany, since several key events took place on this day that had a lasting impact on German history – including the November Revolution in 1918, the Pogrom Night in 1938 and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. Events will also be held on Saturday in Berlin and Brandenburg to commemorate the November pogroms of 1938.