Communist East Germany closed its border in Berlin on Aug. 13, 1961, when it erected a wall that eventually turned into an increasingly elaborate fortification snaking through the city and around ...

Camping was popular in East Germany when travel options were limited. Families spent summers at lakes, in forests, or at ...

Photos held in a German archive reveal how barriers were tested to prevent East German citizens attempting to flee to freedom, even by killing them. 1 A vehicle smashes into a steel barrier at a ...

Even after almost 35 years when the so-called German Reunification which was, in reality, a bit more like an Anschluss wherein West-Germany simply took over East-Germany occurred, a divided Germany ...

Among casual observers of Eastern Europe’s people’s republics, East Germany retains a mistaken reputation for being an economic sad sack. Yet almost unnoticed, the country has risen to tenth place ...

The Big Ideas: What Is History? After moments of great upheaval, scars can last for generations. By Jenny Erpenbeck Jenny Erpenbeck is a writer. This personal reflection is part of a series called The ...

THE LATE summer sun is beating down on a merry crowd assembled in Neustadt an der Orla, a small town in the east German state of Thuringia. As children slurp ice cream and Thuringian Bratwürste warm ...

Near the East German village of Wandlitz, nine miles to the east of Berlin, is a most unusual settlement. It is a walled-in compound of semi-forested land and wide lawns, within which sit some 20 ...

The core differences between the East German “National People’s Army” (NVA) and the Nazi German Wehrmacht that came before it were doctrinal in nature. Despite having a handful of outward similarities ...

Though spared from actual warfare, the tank’s role in deterrence and crisis response was crucial, influencing global military dynamics and leaving an indelible mark on armored history. During the Cold ...

ERFURT, Germany — Amid the throng and bustle of Saturday shoppers in the cathedral city of Erfurt, a group of women in their 70s has gathered on a medieval market square, holding signs that read Omas ...