History of Germany’s Division
After the end of the Second World War in 1945, a defeated Germany was divided into four occupation zones controlled by the Allied powers: the United States, France, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union. In 1949, two states emerged: the Democratic Federal Republic of Germany (BRG) in the West and the Socialist German Democratic Republic (GDR) in the East, with the latter under Soviet control. From this point on, Germany was split.
Restrictions and Surveillance
Citizens of East Germany were only allowed to travel west under strict conditions. The borders of the GDR were heavily guarded, and a massive wall was built around West Berlin, which belonged to the BRG, to prevent GDR citizens from leaving their country. People in the GDR lived in a surveillance state with limited freedom of expression, and those who did not follow the socialist regime’s line were suspended.
Path to Reunification
In the late 1980s, the population increasingly turned against the government, longing for freedom and democracy like their neighbors in the Federal Republic of Germany. Mikhail Gorbachev’s reform policy in the Soviet Union interrupted military violence to suppress protest movements in the GDR and other Eastern Bloc countries. In 1989, a wave of peaceful demonstrations swept through East German cities, ultimately leading to the fall of the Berlin Wall and paving the way for reunification between East and West Germany.
German Unity Day
The opening of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989, was a turning point for reunification. However, this date is also associated with tragedy, as it marks the night the Nazis burned synagogues, destroyed Jewish companies and houses, and murdered and arrested Jewish people in 1938. To avoid revising the memory of this night, October 3 was chosen for the new national holiday, as it was the day in 1990 when reunification was officially completed, with the GDR merging with the Federal Republic of Germany.
Celebrations
Germans celebrate Unity Day relatively quietly, with almost every city organizing events, open houses, and smaller celebrations. One of the states hosts a larger official festival every year on October 3, usually in its state capital. In 2025, it is Saarland’s turn, with the official program running in the capital, Saarbrücken, from October 2 to 4, promising entertainment, art, culture, culinary specialties, tourism, and democratic exchange.
Monument to Freedom and Unity
Despite plans to build a "monument to freedom and unity" in Berlin, which was decided upon by Germany’s Parliament in 2007, the construction has been delayed due to disputes between companies and government institutions. The monument, intended to be an interactive metaphor for democracy, is still pending.
Unity in Modern Germany
A recent survey shows that Germany has not yet completely overcome its division, with only 35% of respondents saying that the East and West have "largely grown together." Different perceptions between East and West Germans seem to confirm the gap, with 23% in the East believing that Germans have been a unified people since 1990, compared to 37% in the West. The feeling of belonging reached its highest point in 2019, with 51% agreeing that the two former countries had basically become one. Compensation for wages, pensions, and prosperity is seen as the key factor still missing for successful reunification.
