The Berlin Wall and the Checkpoint Charlie have an important role in the history of Germany. Witness to the gruesome effects of the cold war between America, France, Britain and the Soviet Union, the Checkpoint Charlie is one of the most important historical sites in Germany. It was also the site for the American and the Soviet military defensive stand in 1961, after a series of retentions and obstructions on diplomatic vehicles by the East German transport police. The Checkpoint Charlie is located at the merger of the Mauerstraße, Zimmerstraße and the Friedrichstraße. It was also referred to as the Grenzübergangsstelle, meaning the border crossing point, by the East Germans.
With the construction of the Berlin Wall in the year 1961, the former American President John F. Kennedy instructed for the building up of three checkpoints, out of which Checkpoint Charlie was one. The other two were the Dreilinden at the West
Berlin and East Germany border and Helmstedt at
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the West German-East German border. All the three checkpoints were named following the phonetic alphabet. Helmstedt was known as alpha, Dreilinden checkpoint was known as bravo and the checkpoint at Friedrichstrasse was known as Charlie. While trespassing between the two territories of the West and the East Berlin was prohibited, it was open only to the government diplomats and military forces from the two territories.
The Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin was finally removed from its position in the month of June, 1990 after the reunification of Germany. Today, millions of people flock into the area to have a glimpse of the replica of the booth of Checkpoint Charlie while the original booth is kept in the Allied Museum in Zehlendorf. A series of bricks have now been placed across the street of Friedrichstadt that trace the route of the Berlin Wall. Another Berlin tourist attractions in the area is the Haus am Checkpoint Charlie, which is just a few yards away from the original site of Checkpoint Charlie.
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