Berlin, the Cold War Years – Part 4. At the end of World War 2,
what remained of pre-war Germany was divided into four zones of
occupation. Each of the Allied powers; the United Kingdom,
United States, France and Russia, controlled one of them. The
capital of Germany, Berlin, was also divided into four Sectors.
The consequence being, that the three Western Allied powers now
controlled territory deep within the Soviet Union Zone of
Germany. Over time, the tensions between the four Allied powers
increased, eventually resulting in the Berlin blockade in 1948,
when the Soviets attempted to starve West Berlin into submission
and force the other three Allied powers out. This failed and the
Soviets eventually relented, but an ever-increasing number of
East Germans fled to the West; between 150,000 and 300,000 a
year during 1951-1953. As a consequence restrictions were placed
on movement between the divided country. From 1961, the border
was closed and Berlin completely encircled, first by barbed
wire, then bricks an