This Day in History: East Germany Opens the Berlin Wall

This Day in History: , East Germany Opens the Berlin Wall.

November 9, 1989.

The East German action followed a decision by Hungarian officials a few weeks earlier to open the border between Hungary and Austria.

This meant that East Germans could circumvent the Wall by going through Hungary into Austria and into West Germany.

The following day, celebrating Germans began to tear the wall down.

One of the ugliest and most infamous symbols of the Cold War was soon reduced to rubble.

The decision to open the wall was a reflection of immense political change in East Germany.

The destruction of the Berlin Wall was one of the most significant actions leading to the end of the Cold War