Berlin, carved up by the victors of the Second World War between East and West was to become the centre of the stand-off between the post war superpowers, America and the Soviet Union. West Berlin was a capitalist enclave in communist territory, and an increasing irritation to the communists as economic growth and living standards outpaced those in the Soviet East. By the late 1950s it was the main gap in an Iron Curtain that split the continent of Europe physically and ideologically.

After the creation of the ill-named German Democratic Republic in 1949, at least 2.5 million East Germans fled their communist homeland, most of them through West Berlin. On the orders of the Communist Party the barrier that was to divide the city sprang up on 13 August, 1961. At first it was rudimentary, but as the escape attempts became more daring its iconic concrete structure, with watchtowers, snipers and guard dogs, evolved.

In an atmosphere of paranoia about the risk of nuclear war, there was no resistance to the Wall from the West. Far from becoming the enduring testament to Soviet strength and lasting for another 100 years, as the East German leader Erich Honecker foretold in 1989, the Wall became a symbol of the failure and fatigue of an ideology.

The only way that East German citizens could be made to stay was by closing Berlin's borders with the West. When these barriers were relaxed after 28 years, gleeful East Berliners rushed through on 9 November 1989 it became the defining moment of the Cold War. Your guide to this interesting period of Berlin's history is Colonel Peter Knox.

ITINERARY
Day 1 (Monday): Fly London to Berlin. Orientation tour en-route to our centrally located hotel. Dinner and overnight.
Day 2: We begin by visiting the Karlshorst museum where the unconditional surrender document was signed on the 8/9 May 1945. From there we drive to Potsdam via the Glienicke Bridge on the former border between East and West Berlin, the scene of the famous spy exchanges at the height of the Cold War. In Potsdam we visit Schloss Cecilienhof where the Potsdam Conference took place in July and August 1945 and Sanssouci, the former summer palace of Frederick the Great of Prussia. Dinner in our hotel.
Day 3: First a visit to the Berlin Wall memorial and then onto Check Point Charlie the best known crossing point between East and West Berlin. From there to the DDR Museum, the Stasi HQ and finally the Stasi Prison. Own dinner arrangements.
Day 4: We begin by visiting the Museum of the Allies which covers the military commitments and roles of the western Allies in the post-war period (especially the Berlin Airlift) and the life of the Allied troops in Berlin. Drive to Templehof airport to see memorial to the Berlin Airlift. Then to the area of the Brandenburg Gate to see the memorial to those killed trying to escape into West Berlin. Visiting Berlin would not be complete without a visit to the CWGC cemetery where many RAF bomber crews lie buried.
Day 5: Morning at leisure in the city. Afternoon departure for the airport for our return flight to London.