Where was the border between Germany and Germany? Which countries borders germany in the east, west, south and north. Also in the east, more children attend kindergartens

What is Germany for you? For me, this is one of the most beloved countries, where I am ready to return endlessly. However, there are enough interesting places around it. It is very interesting to know with whom Germany borders, because you can make many interesting routes visiting several countries at once. Of course, not ignoring Germany itself.

What countries borders Germany

Germany is surrounded on all sides by its colleagues in the European Union, there are as many as 9 such countries:

• Denmark;
• Belgium;
• Holland;
• Poland;
• Czech Republic;
• Switzerland;
• Austria;
• Luxembourg;
• France.

Why is the neighborhood of these countries with Germany interesting? Everything is simple. Do you want to Amsterdam? Fly low-cost to Düsseldorf, and from there it's only 4 hours by bus. Have you always dreamed of visiting Prague? Go to Berlin, walk there, then take the train to Dresden (only 2 hours), and from there another hour to Prague. In total - 3 amazing cities can be mastered in just a couple of days, especially without straining. Have you decided to combine France and Germany on your trip? Easily! Drive to the west of Germany, cross the border and immediately get into beautiful Strasbourg - that's another tour ready. Well, if you like the north more, you should go to Rostock. There you will feel the breath of the sea, taste fresh squid and, if you're lucky, take a ferry to Denmark. And there already the rest of Scandinavia can be mastered.

In fact, even the seemingly simple border of Germany with another country is a very interesting sight. There are places where cities stand close to each other and are separated by just one street. A river separates Germany from Poland, I was delighted when I crossed the border on foot and saw how literally everything around was changing. And the city of Aachen is a delight. The borders of 3 countries converge in it - Germany, Belgium and Holland. Where else will you see this? In addition, Aachen itself is very beautiful.

In my opinion, the border German cities deserve a separate trip - you definitely won't regret it. Try it, create new routes, don't be afraid of long journeys - travel time to amazing places flies unnoticed.

In the winter of 1945, rapidly retreating German troops blew up bridges across the Neisse and Oder rivers to hold back the advancing Red Army. Without knowing it, the Germans thereby determined the future border between the GDR and Poland, losing not only significant territories to the east, but also "cutting" the cities of Görlitz, Gubin, Frankfurt an der Oder and Kustrin in half. All these cities were located along the banks of the Oder, and following the results of the Yalta Conference, the border of Poland passed just along the river, as a result of which everything that was on the right bank became Polish. It was this fate that befell the ancient Görlitz, whose eastern part was called Zgorzelec as part of Poland. From 1945 to 2007, the Neisse river was a protected border, and then Poland joined the Schengen and now the city is technically reunited. Today I came to this double city to see how people live here with a view of the neighboring state. So, on the right - Poland, on the left - Germany.

This is how Görlitz-Zgorzelec looks on Google Earth, it is connected by two bridges, one of which is exclusively pedestrian, and the second is both automobile and pedestrian -

Our hotel is just on the river bank, on the second floor, directly above the car and overlooking Germany -

Locals say that during the communist era, and even though the GDR and Poland were friendly states that were part of the Soviet bloc, there was no free access to the border river. Only those who had a special pass to the border zone lived in these houses. And the police post was located about a kilometer from the river, right in the middle of the city and it was impossible to pass it without a special permit. The same scheme was in the GDR.

Today, the border is not felt at all, especially when you go through a brand new pedestrian bridge -

View from the bridge to the Neisse river. Germany on the right, as well as the island on the river is also German -

View from Germany to the Polish Zgorzelec -

The sleeping quarters of Zgorzelec are visible from everywhere in Görlitz -

Görlitz suffered relatively little damage during the war, well, "little" by German standards. It was only half destroyed. Another thing is that the authorities of the GDR did not particularly invest in the restoration, and until the unification of Germany, it was partially destroyed and partially abandoned. Something reminiscent of the same in the Kaliningrad region. After the unification of Germany, funds began to flow like a river and the city began to change for the better -

But there is still a lot of work, abandoned houses are common -

As already mentioned, the GDR authorities did not invest in restoration, but at best they destroyed damaged buildings and built ordinary "Khrushchev" buildings in their place, like these -

And in the worst case, they did nothing at all, leaving everything as it is, see the house on the right -

Or here -

The whole old Görlitz looked something like this some 25 years ago, like this building on the right -

It will take quite a bit of time and the hand of the restorers will get here too -

And the whole Görlitz will turn into candy -

As we have already said, Görlitz and Zgorzelec are connected by two bridges, pedestrian and automobile. I showed you the first one at the very beginning, but here is the automobile one, where until 2007 there was a border checkpoint and customs between Poland and Germany. However, customs was removed back in 2004 in connection with Poland's entry into the EU -

We stomp across the bridge back to Poland -

I can't understand why cigarettes are cheaper in Poland than in Germany with a single market and an open border? But the Germans go in droves across the bridge for cigarettes and vodka. Paradox -

There is clearly less money in Zgorrzelec than in Görlitz, and this is noticeable by the condition of the buildings -

Walking around the twin cities, I noticed an interesting feature: in Zgorzelets it is a problem to eat, there are very few cafes and restaurants. But in Görlitz there are "eating places" on every corner. But I didn’t even think of having dinner in Germany, everything is more expensive there! As well as the hotel was not going to look for on the other side. No, I really can't figure out how this whole system works. After all, the Germans have hotels twice as expensive and you should take a five-minute walk across the bridge to Zgorzelec to get a wonderful hotel for a penny. But somehow German hotels do not go bankrupt and keep high rates. It's the same with restaurants. I crossed the bridge and ... everything is one and a half to two times cheaper. Out of interest, I asked the owners of a nice cafe in Zgorzelec whether the Germans go to them? They do, but very rarely, they answered.

Already returning to the hotel after dinner, we met a rough local youth in a strong drunk. I don’t know how I can be mistaken for a German, but they shouted “Ein-zwei-drei, fak Deutschland!”.

Yes, I did not meet crowds of Arab refugees. In these parts, the people are simple and relatively poor, they do not differ in humanism, they can even punch you in the face. Refugees are loved and welcomed by Munich, Hamburg, Vienna, Stockholm and Copenhagen.

And Gorlitz-Zgorzelec reminded me very much of the one divided between Russia and Estonia.

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The Berlin Wall and the Brandenburg Gate can be called the main symbols of the post-war division of Germany and peaceful reunification. But the border between the GDR and the FRG ran not only along Berlin, although it was precisely this part that was its most noticeable part - the front line of the Cold War.

She disappeared over two decades ago. Others followed. Now almost all of Europe can be driven by car without ever presenting documents. And yet, when a brown shield "Deutsche Teilung 1945-1990" appears around the next turn of the autobahn, reminiscent of the division of Germany, it becomes somehow uncomfortable.

Control mirror

Between two systems

The "German-German" border was one of the most "deaf" in the world. Its total length was 1378 kilometers. Almost throughout its length it was equipped with a fence with barbed wire or other fortifications. Control towers stood almost every half a kilometer from the GDR. In total, there were about 630 of them. Until November 1984, 440 kilometers of the border were equipped with SM-70 crossbow devices. There were about 60 thousand of them.

border tower

The death toll during attempts to escape to the West, according to the latest estimates, exceeds 800 people, of which 270 cases are officially recognized by the prosecutor's office. Disputes over these figures continue even now, almost 20 years after the disappearance of the German-German border.

As it strengthened, the number of successful escapes from the GDR to West Germany steadily decreased. From August 13, 1961, that is, the date of the construction of the Berlin Wall, until the end of 1962, more than 14 thousand refugees were registered, in 1964 - 3155, in 1974 - 969. In 1985, only 160 people fled directly across the border from the GDR.

signal cone

Memorial complex Marienborn

Checkpoints still remind of the former border in some places. Today we will make a stop in one of them, leaving the autobahn between the western federal state of Lower Saxony and eastern Saxony-Anhalt.

On the federal highway A2, the exit to the "piece" of the former "Iron Curtain" with an area of ​​​​7.5 hectares is indicated by a sign: "Memorial complex Marienborn". We slowly drive past a gas station and a service center. Behind them is a parking lot and the inscription "Gedenkstätte Deutsche Teilung Marienborn". The entrance is free. It seems that the wind will blow, and the balls of thorns - tumbleweeds - rolled out of nowhere will roll across the deserted area.

The checkpoint between the occupation zones on the autobahn, which connected Berlin and Hannover, was opened immediately after the war - in July 1945. In 1950, Soviet troops handed over the checkpoint to the control of the authorities of the newly founded GDR. During the blockade of Berlin from June 1948 to May 1949, the checkpoint did not work.

capital construction

The complex, which has survived to this day, was built in 1974. It occupied then 35 hectares. The checkpoint at Marienborn became the largest on the German-German border. Inspection and control of cars, passenger and freight transport, as well as a railway line, was provided by up to 1000 border guards, customs officers and employees of the Ministry of State Security ("Stasi") of the GDR. It was on an important route towards Berlin. Transit from Germany and other states of Western Europe to Poland and other countries of the Eastern Bloc was also carried out through this route.

In the same place of the border, there were separate checkpoints of the Soviet army and Western allied states - the USA, Great Britain and France, which carried out the inspection of their vehicles crossing the intra-German border.

Zebra on the autobahn

The West German checkpoint was located in the neighboring village of Helmstedt in Lower Saxony. Since the authorities of the Federal Republic did not recognize the permanent nature of the border, the checkpoint on the western side was not permanent, but was of a temporary nature. Its capacity was often not enough, which led to long queues and delays. In this regard, parking lots were expanded in Helmstedt, as well as the capacity of filling stations, cafes and restaurants. They were located on both sides of the autobahn.

There was no underground or elevated crossing in this place, so a zebra was painted here right on the autobahn - a unique case in the history of German highways, almost anecdotal.

On June 30, 1990, the checkpoint in Marienborn ceased to exist, but soon received the status of a historical monument. In 1992, the federal state of Saxony-Anhalt allocated funds for the creation of a memorial complex on its basis.

Walk through the former checkpoint

Huge towers with huge searchlights are already visible from afar. The power of each of the 12 towers was 8000 watts. Bright light flooded the entire territory of the checkpoint. Marienborn had an autonomous power supply system. In the event of a disconnection from the external power supply, the emergency units turned on after 20 seconds.

In separate buildings there were X-ray machines for checking luggage and trucks, as well as rooms for personal searches. Visual inspection of cars and buses was carried out using special stationary and manual mirrors.

Between the headquarters building and the freight transport control point there was a mortuary for the inspection of bodies transported to the FRG or other Western countries and, in exceptional cases, from these states to the GDR. There was also a medical center for the control of patients. The buildings were connected by a secret system of underground passages and tunnels, which not all employees of the checkpoint knew about.

prohibition signs

According to official data, in the last "five-year period" the staff of the checkpoint carried out checks of almost 10 million cars and about 5 million trucks.

In 1945, after the victory over the Reich, the USA, Great Britain, France and the USSR divided Germany into 4 zones of occupation. In 1949, the American, British, and French zones merged into the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), and the Soviet zone became the German Democratic Republic (GDR).

They united in 1990, but the difference in the development of the east and west of the country is still felt. The country even has a "solidarity tax" paid by residents of Germany's wealthy western lands in order to finance the eastern, less developed regions. In the German government, that it will be possible to "pull up" the east to the level of the west only in 15-20 years.

Although there are differences not only in the economy and the level of development, but also in.

1. This is what Germany looked like after being occupied by the Allies in the Anti-Hitler Coalition

Red - Soviet zone of occupation (East Germany, East Germany), orange - American, blue - French, green - British (these three zones made up West Germany, Germany).

On the right, the territories that ceded to Poland and the USSR are highlighted in white, on the left, in white, from which France wanted to make a buffer state, but later it nevertheless joined the FRG.

There were radically opposite ideologies in the two Germanys: the FRG was a democratic state oriented towards the West, the GDR was a one-party socialist country oriented towards the USSR. This led to differences that have not been smoothed out so far.

2. Income is higher in the west than in the east

3. Therefore, East Germans can afford slightly lower expenses.

The graph shows the proportion of West (yellow) and East (blue) Germans who own a washing machine, dishwasher, and microwave.

4. East - agricultural region

The graph shows the average farm size.

5. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the birth rate in the east fell sharply, but then recovered

The reason is the then uncertainty of the inhabitants of the former GDR in their future.

On the other hand, the last crisis of 2008 scared the West Germans more than the East, and the birth rate decreased in the West - the East was already living in times of economic upheaval, even greater than the current one, and such local residents cannot be scared.

The graph shows the average number of children a woman has.

6. Average age in the east is higher than in the west

After the reunification of Germany, many young people left the depressive east for the developed west, and they stayed there.

7. East Germans prefer to relax in their homeland - on the coast of the Baltic Sea. And Westerners are in Spain

8. In the GDR, they were more responsible for their health and more often vaccinated against the flu

The graph shows the proportion of those aged over 60 who were vaccinated against influenza.

9. Also in the east, more children attend kindergartens.

10. And the West Germans have more weapons "on hand" ...

The graph shows the number of legal weapons per 1,000 people.

11. ... and camper vans

The graph shows the number of gun vans per 1,000 people.

12. The split into two states even affected football.

The former GDR is hardly represented in German football. The reason is that in the east there is less money, quality managers and the necessary infrastructure.

E By that article, we in no way call for abandoning the demands to end the occupation of Crimea. We just want to explain that its reintegration will be difficult, long and costly, because as long as Ukraine develops, Crimea will remain in the past.

The German Democratic Republic, or GDR for short, is a country located in the Center of Europe and marked on maps for exactly 41 years. This is the westernmost country of the socialist camp that existed at that time, formed in 1949 and became part of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1990.

German Democratic Republic

In the north, the border of the GDR ran along the Baltic Sea, on land it bordered on the FRG, Czechoslovakia and Poland. Its area was 108 thousand square kilometers. The population was 17 million people. The capital of the country was East Berlin. The entire territory of the GDR was divided into 15 districts. In the center of the country was the territory of West Berlin.

Location of the GDR

On a small territory of the GDR there was a sea, mountains and plains. The north was washed by the Baltic Sea, which forms several bays and shallow lagoons. They are connected to the sea by straits. She owned the islands, the largest of them - Rügen, Usedom and Pel. There are many rivers in the country. The largest are the Oder, Elbe, their tributaries Havel, Spree, Saale, as well as the Main - a tributary of the Rhine. Of the many lakes, the largest are Müritz, Schweriner See, Plauer See.

In the south, the country was framed by low mountains, significantly cut by rivers: from the west, the Harz, from the south-west, the Thuringian Forest, from the south, the Ore Mountains with the highest peak Fichtelberg (1212 meters). The north of the territory of the GDR was located on the Central European Plain, to the south lay the plain of the Macklenburg Lake District. South of Berlin stretches a strip of sandy plains.

East Berlin

It has been restored almost completely. The city was divided into occupation zones. After the creation of the FRG, its eastern part became part of the GDR, and the western part was an enclave surrounded on all sides by the territory of East Germany. According to the constitution of Berlin (Western), the land on which it was located belonged to the Federal Republic of Germany. The capital of the GDR was a major center of science and culture of the country.

The Academies of Sciences and Arts, many higher educational institutions were located here. Concert halls and theaters hosted outstanding musicians and artists from all over the world. Many parks and alleys served as decoration for the capital of the GDR. Sports facilities were erected in the city: stadiums, swimming pools, courts, competition grounds. The most famous park for the inhabitants of the USSR was Treptow Park, in which a monument to the liberator soldier was erected.

Big cities

The majority of the country's population was urban dwellers. In a small country, there were several cities with a population of more than half a million people. The large cities of the former German Democratic Republic, as a rule, had a rather ancient history. These are the cultural and economic centers of the country. The largest cities include Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig. The cities of East Germany were badly damaged. But Berlin suffered the most, where the fighting went literally for every house.

The largest cities were located in the south of the country: Karl-Marx-Stadt (Meissen), Dresden and Leipzig. Every city in the GDR was famous for something. Rostock, located in northern Germany, is a modern port city. The world-famous porcelain was produced in Karl-Marx-Stadt (Meissen). In Jena, there was the famous Carl Zeiss factory, which produced lenses, including for telescopes, famous binoculars and microscopes were produced here. This city was also famous for its universities and scientific institutions. This is a city of students. Schiller and Goethe once lived in Weimar.

Karl-Marx-Stadt (1953-1990)

This city, founded in the 12th century in the land of Saxony, now bears its original name - Chemnitz. It is the center of textile engineering and textile industry, machine tool building and mechanical engineering. The city was completely destroyed by British and American bombers and rebuilt after the war. There are small islands of old buildings left.

Leipzig

The city of Leipzig, located in Saxony, before the unification of the GDR and the FRG was one of the largest cities in the German Democratic Republic. 32 kilometers away is another major German city - Halle, which is located in Saxony-Anhalt. Together, the two cities form an urban agglomeration with a population of 1,100,000 people.

The city has long been the cultural and scientific center of Central Germany. It is known for its universities as well as fairs. Leipzig is one of the most developed industrial regions in East Germany. Since the late Middle Ages, Leipzig has been a recognized center of printing and bookselling in Germany.

The greatest composer Johann Sebastian Bach lived and worked in this city, as well as the famous Felix Mendelssohn. The city is still famous for its musical traditions. Since ancient times, Leipzig has been a major trading center; until the last war, the famous fur trades were held here.

Dresden

The pearl among German cities is Dresden. The Germans themselves call it Florence on the Elbe, as there are many baroque architectural monuments here. The first mention of it was recorded in 1206. Dresden has always been the capital: since 1485 - the Margraviate of Meissen, since 1547 - the Electorate of Saxony.

It is located on the Elbe River. The border with the Czech Republic passes 40 kilometers from it. It is the administrative center of Saxony. Its population is about 600,000 inhabitants.

The city suffered greatly from the bombing of US and British aircraft. Up to 30,000 residents and refugees perished, most of them elderly, women and children. During the bombardment, the castle-residence, the Zwinger complex, and the Semperoper were badly destroyed. Almost the entire historical center lay in ruins.

In order to restore architectural monuments, after the war, all the surviving parts of the buildings were dismantled, rewritten, numbered and taken out of the city. Everything that could not be restored was cleared away.

The old city was a flat area on which most of the monuments were gradually restored. The government of the GDR came up with a proposal to revive the old city, which lasted almost forty years. For residents, new quarters and avenues were built around the old city.

Coat of arms of the GDR

Like any country, the GDR had its own coat of arms, described in Chapter 1 of the constitution. The coat of arms of the German Democratic Republic consisted of a golden hammer superimposed on each other, embodying the working class, and a compass, personifying the intelligentsia. They were surrounded by a golden wreath of wheat, representing the peasantry, intertwined with ribbons of the national flag.

Flag of the GDR

The flag of the German Democratic Republic was an elongated panel consisting of four equal width stripes painted in the national colors of Germany: black, red and gold. In the middle of the flag was the coat of arms of the GDR, which distinguished it from the flag of the FRG.

Prerequisites for the formation of the GDR

The history of the GDR covers a very short period of time, but it is still being studied with great attention by German scientists. The country was in strict isolation from the FRG and the entire Western world. After the surrender of Germany in May 1945, there were occupation zones, there were four of them, since the former state ceased to exist. All power in the country, with all management functions, formally passed to the military administrations.

The transitional period was complicated by the fact that Germany, especially its eastern part, where the German resistance was desperate, lay in ruins. The barbaric bombardments by British and American aircraft were intended to intimidate the civilian population of the cities that were liberated by the Soviet army, to turn them into a heap of ruins.

In addition, there was no agreement between the former allies regarding the vision of the future of the country, and this is what subsequently led to the creation of two countries - the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic.

Basic Principles for the Reconstruction of Germany

Even at the Yalta Conference, the basic principles for the restoration of Germany were considered, which were later fully agreed upon and approved at the conference in Potsdam by the victorious countries: the USSR, Great Britain and the USA. They were also approved by the countries that participated in the war against Germany, in particular France, and contained the following provisions:

• Complete destruction of the totalitarian state.
• Complete ban on the NSDAP and all organizations associated with it.
• The complete liquidation of the punitive organizations of the Reich, such as the SA, SS, SD services, as they were recognized as criminal.
• The army was completely liquidated.
• Racial and political laws were abolished.
• Gradual and consistent implementation of denazification, demilitarization and democratization.

The decision of the German question, which included a peace treaty, was entrusted to the Council of Ministers of the victorious countries. On June 5, 1945, the victorious states promulgated the Declaration of the Defeat of Germany, according to which the country was divided into four occupation zones controlled by the administrations of Great Britain (the largest zone), the USSR, the USA and France. The capital of Germany, Berlin, was also divided into zones. The decision of all issues was entrusted to the Control Council, it included representatives of the victorious countries.

Party of Germany

In Germany, in order to restore statehood, the formation of new political parties that would be democratic in nature was allowed. In the eastern sector, emphasis was placed on the revival of the Communist and Social Democratic Party of Germany, which soon merged into the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (1946). Its goal was to build a socialist state. It was the ruling party in the German Democratic Republic.

In the western sectors, the CDU (Christian Democratic Union) party formed in June 1945 became the main political force. In 1946, the CSU (Christian-Social Union) was formed in Bavaria according to this principle. Their basic principle is a democratic republic based on market economy based on the rights of private property.

Political confrontations on the issue of the post-war structure of Germany between the USSR and the rest of the coalition countries were so serious that their further aggravation would lead either to a split of the state or to a new war.

Formation of the German Democratic Republic

In December 1946, Great Britain and the United States, ignoring numerous proposals from the USSR, announced the merger of their two zones. She was abbreviated as "Bizonia". This was preceded by the refusal of the Soviet administration to supply agricultural products to the western zones. In response to this, transit shipments of equipment exported from factories and plants in East Germany and located in the Ruhr region to the USSR zone were stopped.

At the beginning of April 1949, France also joined the Bizonia, as a result of which Trizonia was formed, from which the Federal Republic of Germany was subsequently formed. Thus, the Western powers, having entered into an agreement with the big German bourgeoisie, created a new state. In response to this, at the end of 1949, the German Democratic Republic was created. Berlin, or rather its Soviet zone, became its center and capital.

The People's Council was temporarily reorganized into the People's Chamber, which adopted the Constitution of the GDR, which passed a nationwide discussion. 09/11/1949 the first president of the GDR was elected. It was the legendary Wilhelm Pick. At the same time, the government of the GDR was temporarily created, headed by O. Grotewohl. The military administration of the USSR transferred all functions of governing the country to the government of the GDR.

The Soviet Union did not want the division of Germany. They were repeatedly made proposals for the unification and development of the country in accordance with the Potsdam decisions, but they were regularly rejected by Great Britain and the United States. Even after the division of Germany into two countries, Stalin made proposals for the unification of the GDR and the FRG, provided that the decisions of the Potsdam Conference were observed and that Germany was not drawn into any political and military blocs. But the Western states refused to do so, ignoring Potsdam's decisions.

The political system of the GDR

The form of government of the country was based on the principle of people's democracy, in which a bicameral parliament operated. The state system of the country was considered to be bourgeois-democratic, in which socialist transformations took place. The German Democratic Republic included the lands of the former Germany of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

The lower (people's) chamber was elected by universal secret ballot. The upper chamber was called the Land Chamber, the executive body was the government, which was composed of the prime minister and ministers. It was formed by appointment, which was carried out by the largest faction of the People's Chamber.

The administrative-territorial division consisted of lands, consisting of districts, divided into communities. The functions of the legislature were carried out by the Landtags, the executive bodies were the governments of the lands.

The People's Chamber - the highest body of the state - consisted of 500 deputies, who were elected by the people by secret ballot for a term of 4 years. It was represented by all parties and public organizations. The People's Chamber, acting on the basis of laws, made the most important decisions on the development of the country, dealt with relations between organizations, observing the rules for cooperation between citizens, state organizations and associations; adopted the main law - the Constitution and other laws of the country.

Economy of the GDR

After the partition of Germany, the economic situation of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) was very difficult. This part of Germany was very badly destroyed. The equipment of plants and factories was taken to the western sectors of Germany. The GDR was simply cut off from the historical raw material bases, most of which were in the FRG. There was a lack of such natural resources as ore and coal. There were few specialists: engineers, executives who left for the FRG, frightened by the propaganda about the cruel reprisal of Russians.

With the help of the Union and other Commonwealth countries, the economy of the GDR gradually began to gain momentum. Businesses were restored. It was believed that centralized leadership and a planned economy served as a deterrent to the development of the economy. It should be taken into account that the restoration of the country took place in isolation from the western part of Germany, in an atmosphere of tough confrontation between the two countries, open provocations.

Historically, the eastern regions of Germany were mostly agricultural, and in its western part, rich in coal and deposits of metal ores, heavy industry, metallurgy and engineering were concentrated.

Without the financial and material assistance of the Soviet Union, it would have been impossible to achieve an early restoration of industry. For the losses suffered by the USSR during the war years, the GDR paid him reparation payments. Since 1950, their volume has been halved, and in 1954 the USSR refused to receive them.

Foreign policy situation

The construction of the Berlin Wall by the German Democratic Republic became a symbol of the intransigence of the two blocs. The eastern and western blocs of Germany were building up their military forces, provocations from the western bloc became more frequent. It came to open sabotage and arson. The propaganda machine worked at full power, using economic and political difficulties. Germany, like many Western European countries, did not recognize the GDR. The peak of the aggravation of relations occurred in the early 1960s.

The so-called "German crisis" also arose thanks to West Berlin, which, legally being the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany, was located in the very center of the GDR. The border between the two zones was conditional. As a result of the confrontation between NATO blocs and the Warsaw bloc countries, the SED Politburo decides to build a border around West Berlin, which was a reinforced concrete wall 106 km long and 3.6 m high and a metal mesh fence 66 km long. She stood from August 1961 until November 1989.

After the merger of the GDR and the FRG, the wall was demolished, only a small section remained, which became the Berlin Wall memorial. In October 1990, the GDR became part of the FRG. The history of the German Democratic Republic, which existed for 41 years, is intensively studied and researched by scientists of modern Germany.

Despite the propaganda discrediting of this country, scientists are well aware that it gave Western Germany a lot. In a number of parameters, she surpassed her Western brother. Yes, the joy of reunification was genuine for the Germans, but it is not worth belittling the importance of the GDR, one of the most developed countries in Europe, and many in modern Germany understand this very well.