Historical account of Soviet occupation, post‑war Berlin escapes, and mass rapes

During the Soviet occupation of Germany, mass rapes took place in the occupied territory during the war and after. Some historians say that as many as 2 million German women might have been raped. #25 ‘Leap Into Freedom’ a Image source: TIME After post-war Berlin was divided into four occupation zones, the living conditions were greatly different in each one. Between 1949 and 1961, about 2.5 million people fled from Soviet-occupied East Germany. Barricades and barb wire was placed to stop people from fleeing but that did not stop 19-year-old border guard Hans Conrad Schumann. A crown in West Berlin was enticing the young soldier to come over. The soldier said he did not want to “live enclosed,” and jumped the barbed wire, escaping into the West side. The photo was considered a symbol of freedom but Hans did not deal with the newly-found fame well — he committed suicide in 1998. #26 ‘D-Day’ HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020692