17 June East Berlin Uprising Memorial 1953

The East German uprising of 1953 began with a strike action by East Berlin construction workers on 16 June, and turned into a widespread uprising against the communist German Democratic Republic government the next day. The uprising in East Berlin was violently suppressed by tanks of the Soviet occupation forces, and the Kasernierte Volkspolizei. The date, 17 June, was celebrated as a public holiday in West Germany up until the German reunification, after which it was replaced by German Unity Day, celebrated annually on 3 October.

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