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Berlin--Retracing the Cold War, Part I

© Roxanne Nelson

At the end of World War II, Winston Churchill warned the Allies about Russian intentions, stating that "an iron curtain" has descended upon Europe. His prediction became a reality not long afterwards, as all of Eastern Europe fell like dominoes, one by one, under the thumb of Soviet domination. The West and the East locked horns and plunged head on into a 45 year stalemate called the Cold War.

Nearly ten years have passed since the fall of the Berlin Wall, which, for the most part, signaled the beginning of the end of the Cold War. It is interesting how much of Cold War intrigue centered around the city of Berlin; tales of spies and espionage, myths and glamour--even Hollywood found its way to Berlin and the city became the backdrop for numerous spy movies. Here in Berlin, East and West ran neck to neck; it was the city where members of the CIA and Britain's MI6 rubbed shoulders with the KGB--the divided city where capitalism and socialism were just a Wall away. Berlin is the city where the Cold War began, it is the city where two major U.S.-Soviet confrontations occured, and the city where it all ended.

Unfortunately, in the haste to destroy all traces of the former East Germany, many Cold War relics have disappeared. Paved over, rebuilt upon--at the moment, Berlin is the largest construction site in Europe, possibly the world, as its Eastern half is revitalized. But there are still remnants left, if you know where to look. So for the Cold War aficionado, or the just plain curious, or those who were too young to remember the heady days of Khrushchev vs. Kennedy and want to really know what it was all about, this is the city to begin.

The Cold War began in 1945, before the ashes of World War II had even cooled. The victorious powers met at Potsdam, a city on the outskirts of Berlin, and negotiated the Potsdam Treaty, dividing Germany into four zones of occupation. The treaty was signed at the Schloss Cecilienhof, which stands in the midst of the Neuer Garten, a park located on the western banks of the Heiligensee. Today the Schloss Cecilienhof is a luxury hotel, and you can see the room where the treaty was signed.

Berlin was a special case. The capitol of the Third Reich, once one of Europe's great cities, had been reduced to a heap of rubble. But because it lay in the East, in the Russian occupation zone, it rightfully should have come under full Russian rule. However, that did not sit well with the Allies, who hesitated to give the Soviets complete control of such an important city. Berlin was divided into four occupation zones of its own--the U.S., Great Britain and France in the West, and the Russians in the East.