BACKGROUND

Until the morning of Aug. 13, 1961, a growing number of East Germans crossed unhindered into West Berlin. Many came just for a day to work or shop in the West and then returned home. But many more came to stay in West Berlin or go on in West Germany, 110 miles away. . In desperation, the East German regime ordered its security chief, Erich Honecker, to seal the border between East and West Berlin, and on that fateful August morning, the regime’s hated Vopos--people’s police--unfurled concertinas of barbed wire along the line. Stonemasons quickly followed and began building a barrier of cement blocks that quickly became the most dramatic symbol of the division between the Communist East and the democracies of the West--the Berlin Wall. In the months and years that followed, the wall became an evermore formidable barrier. For 26 miles, it rises to a height of 12 to 15 feet as it zigzags through the heart of the city. Parts of it contain a secondary wall. Other barriers enclose the remainder of West Berlin for another 84 miles. On the East Berlin side, steel tank traps line the wall. There are ditches and other barriers designed to prevent vehicles from crashing through. Ribbons of sand lie between the barriers to reveal any telltale footprints for anyone attempting to vault over the wall. Guard towers line the barrier, and guards with dogs patrol the perimeter. Despite the obstacles, East Germans have attempted to flee. Some succeeded by tunneling under the wall or being smuggled past border guards in cars and trucks. Until earlier this year, guards had orders to shoot any would-be escapees, and more than 70 people were killed trying to flee to the West through Berlin.