HCHS Germany: A LEVEL UNIT 3 - German Reunification Flashcards
What was the significance of Willy Brandt’s Ostpolitik?
Lowered tension between East and West Germany
What was the Basic Treaty of 1972?
East and West Germany officially recognised each other’s right to exist
When did Honecker first visit the FRG?
1987
When did Gorbachev become leader of the USSR?
1985
What were Gorbachev’s two main policies?
Glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring)
Why did Gorbachev need to bring about change in the USSR?
Weak economy, military overspend, too much support to Eastern bloc countries
How much did the GDR borrow from the FRG in the early 1980s?
DM1.95 billion
By 1988, how many East Germans had migrated to the FRG?
30,000 (an increase of 18,500)
By 1989, how many East Germans had migrated to the FRG?
48,000 in the first few months
From 1987-88, how many East Germans were allowed to travel to the FRG to work?
6.2 million
What did the Hunagarian government announce on 2nd May, 1989?
Barbed wire fencing along the border with Austria was removed
What did many East Germans do in the summer of 1989?
Go on holiday to Hungary to cross the border to Austria
What did the Hungarian government announce on 9th August 1989
They would no longer stamp GDR citizens’ passports (so they wouldn’t be deported back)
Following Hungary, where did refugees go to to try and leave the East?
FRG embassies in Prague, Budapest, Warsaw and East Berlin
How many refugees crossed the Austria border from Hungary on 20th August 1989?
500
How many refugees did Austria accept on 1st September 1989?
20,000
What did Poland announce on 16th September 1989?
GDR refugees could cross to the West
How many GDR refugees fled Prague (to the West) in September 1989?
15,000
By 3rd November, how many refugees were camped around the FRG embassy in Prague?
45,000
By November 1989, how many people left the GDR each day?
9,000
How many East Germans left the GDR from August-November 1989?
200,000
Why was there a lack of leadership in the GDR during the refugee crisis
Honecker was ill with a gall bladder infection
What happened in Dresden in October 1989?
A 3 hour riot involving 10,000 East Germans as a train from Prague travelled through