Construction of the Berlin Wall

Construction workers of East Berlin extend the Berlin Wall from 'Potsdamer Platz' square in the direction of 'Lindenstrasse' street under the supervision of armed officers of the people's police in Berlin, GDR, 18 August 1961. The wall is build between two and five metres within the demarcation line of the sectors in East Berlin. Here, the borders of the sectors run along the house facades. Grit concrete slabs and hollow bricks, which were initially designed for the building of houses in East Berlin, are used for the construction. The construction workers are paid 1. 28 Deutschmarks an hour. In the early morning of 13 August 1961, under the supervision of GDR's armed forces barbed road blocks were errected and the building of the Berlin Wall began to islolate East Berlin from the western part of Berlin. The wall intends to prevent GDR's citizens from seeking refuge in West Berlin.