Pictured below is Hans Conrad Schumann, also known as Konrad Schumann (1942-1998), escaping to West Germany during the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961.

Pictured below is Hans Conrad Schumann, also known as Konrad Schumann (1942-1998), escaping to West Germany during the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961.

Between 1945 and 1988, around 4 million East Germans migrated to the West, with 3.45 million of them leaving between 1945 and the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961.

The great majority simply walked across the border or, after 1952, exited through West Berlin. 

However, the situation changed significantly after the border was fortified and the Berlin Wall was constructed.

 In 1961, approximately 8,507 people fled across the border, with most of them using West Berlin as their route.

 The construction of the Berlin Wall that year reduced the number of escapees by 75% to around 2,300 per annum for the rest of the decade.

The Wall transformed Berlin from being one of the easiest places to cross the border from the East to one of the most difficult. 

The number of escapees decreased further to 868 per annum during the 1970s and to only 334 per annum between 1980 and 1988.

However, escapees made up only a small minority of the total number of emigrants from East Germany.

 More people left the country after being granted official permits or by being ransomed to the West German government. 

During the 1980s, only about 1% of those who left East Germany did so by escaping across the border.

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