German Democratic Republic

State · 1949–1990 CE · at its largest around 1973 CE

East Germany, the Communist state established in the Soviet occupation zone with East Berlin as its capital. It built the Berlin Wall in 1961, and after the wall fell in 1989 it joined the Federal Republic in 1990.

On its lands while it lasted

Dessau (c. 1863–2007 CE): Capital of Duchy of Anhalt (1863–1870).
Albert Einstein (1879 CE – 1955 CE): German-born theoretical physicist who developed the special and general theories of relativity and explained the photoelectric effect, for which he won the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics.
Werner Heisenberg (1901 CE – 1976 CE): German physicist who created matrix mechanics in 1925, formulated the uncertainty principle in 1927 and won the 1932 Nobel Prize in Physics. He was a leading scientist in Germany’s wartime nuclear programme.
Cold War (1947–1991 CE): The rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union and their allies, fought through an arms race, proxy wars and the space race rather than direct war. Divided Berlin was its emblem; it ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Berlin Blockade and Airlift (1948–1949 CE): The Soviet Union blocked land access to West Berlin from June 1948 to May 1949; the Western Allies supplied the city by air through Tempelhof and other airports.
East Berlin (1949–1990 CE): Capital of German Democratic Republic (1949–1990).
Construction of the Berlin Wall (1961 CE): East Germany sealed off West Berlin with barbed wire and then a concrete wall from 13 August 1961 to stop emigration to the West. The wall became the symbol of the Cold War.
Fall of the Berlin Wall (1989 CE): On 9 November 1989 East Germany opened its border crossings, and crowds began tearing down the Berlin Wall. It symbolised the end of the Cold War.
German reunification (1990 CE): On 3 October 1990 the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany, reuniting the country after 45 years of division.