Dossier: The events that led to the fall of communist Europe

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East Germany | 29.10.2009

Many were surprised when the border between East and West Germany was opened on the night of November 9, 1989. But there had been signs of increasing weakness, both in the Iron Curtain and the communist leadership of the German Democratic Republic for the last year.

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DW-WORLD: Prague embassy crisis 'a severe blow to the Berlin Wall,' Genscher says

West Germany's former foreign minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher tells DW how he experienced September 30, 1989, the fateful day when he told thousands of East German refugees in Prague their departure had been approved. (30.09.2009)
DW-WORLD: Historic East German refugee train rolls again

Twenty years ago, a train carrying hundreds of East Germans left communist Czechoslovakia on a journey to West Germany and freedom. The one-time refugees have now retraced their historic trip on the "Freedom Train." (02.10.2009)
DW-WORLD: The picnic that changed European history

On October 4, 1990, Helmut Kohl announced that it was in Hungary where "the first stone was knocked out of the Wall." The first holes appeared in the Iron Curtain following an August picnic in Sopron. (18.08.2009)
DW-WORLD: Peace prayers helped bring down the Wall, says Leipzig pastor

The peaceful protests that brought down the Berlin Wall began with regular evenings of prayers in the Nikolai Church in Leipzig. Christian Fuehrer, who was pastor at the time, shared some memories with DW-WORLD. (07.01.2009)
DW-WORLD: China's pro-democracy protests struck hope and fear in East Germany

East Germans feared the worst as they watched China's pro-democracy crackdown on West German TV 20 years ago. But their revolution turned out to be peaceful, thanks to Glasnost and the role of Protestant churches. (03.06.2009)
DW-WORLD: Poland blazed the trail for the fall of communism

Much of the world now associates the end of communism in Europe with the collapse of the Berlin Wall. But in fact, the dismantling of the system started in Poland some 10 years before with the founding of Solidarity. (30.10.2009)

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East Germany | 29.10.2009