Hello, my name is Mr. Williams and I'm going to be a history teacher for today.

This lesson is part of a series of lessons about the end of the Cold War, which focus on the years 1970 to 1991.

I'm really looking forward to teaching you today, so let's get started.

By the end of today's lesson, you will be able to explain the event that led to the end of Soviet control of Eastern Europe and the fall of the Berlin Wall.

There are four keywords essential to understanding today's lesson.

They are Doctrine: a set of beliefs or principles, satellite state: a country that is dominated by another country, reform: a change introduced to improve something, often a system or law, and reunification: bringing things or people back together after they've been separated.

Today's lesson will be split into three parts.

In this first part of the lesson, we'll be learning about the end of Soviet control in Eastern Europe.

On the 7th of December, 1988, in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly, the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev announced that the Soviet Union was rejecting the Brezhnev Doctrine.

The Brezhnev Doctrine, which had been adopted in 1968 to justify the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, stated that the USSR could intervene in Eastern European countries if the action of its government posed a threat to communism in other countries, a threat to the Warsaw Pact, or a threat to the security of the Soviet Union.

In his speech to the United Nations, Gorbachev declared: "Force or the threat of force neither can nor should be instruments of foreign policy.

The principle of freedom of choice is not negotiable." With his rejection of the Brezhnev Doctrine, Gorbachev accepted that Soviet satellite states should be free to choose how they were governed.

Countries that decided to introduce reform would no longer have to fear that the Soviet Union would invade, as they had in Hungary in 1956 and in Czechoslovakia in 1968.

To save money, the USSR began to withdraw its troops from bases in Eastern Europe.

Let's take a moment to check your understanding.

True or false.

Gorbachev wanted Soviet satellite states to be able to choose how they were governed.

Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you said that statement was true, but we need to be able to justify why.

So pause the video now and have a go at justifying why this statement is true and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, the statement is true because in his 1988 speech to the United Nations, Gorbachev rejected the Brezhnev Doctrine and stated that the Soviet Union would no longer intervene in the affairs of its satellite states.

Well done if you wrote something similar.

In the USSR, Gorbachev's new thinking had led him to introduce the policies of perestroika and glasnost.

Perestroika restructured the Soviet economy to introduce elements of capitalism, while glasnost introduced greater transparency and freedom in Soviet society.

Gorbachev hoped that Soviet satellite states in Eastern Europe would embrace his new thinking, but his reforms were not intended to bring an end to communist rule.

By reforming communism, Gorbachev's aim was to strengthen it; however, once reforms started in Eastern Europe, it could not be contained.

Let's do a quick check of your understanding.

Gorbachev wanted to end communist rule in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.

Is this true or false? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you said that that statement was false, but let's see if you can justify why.

Pause the video now have a go at writing a brief justification for why this statement is false and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, you could have said that the statement was false because Gorbachev wanted to strengthen communist rule.

He believed that the best way to achieve this was to reform communism.

Well done if you wrote something similar.

Change began in Poland.

In June, 1989, Poland held partially free elections that were won by the trade union movement Solidarity, which had led protests against the communist government since it was founded in 1980.

Solidarity's victory marked the end of communist rule in Poland, and Tadeusz Mazowiecki became the first noncommunist prime minister in Eastern Europe.

In Czechoslovakia, a peaceful protest movement known as the Velvet Revolution began in November, 1989.

It started with student demonstrations against the communist government, which quickly grew into large scale protests with people from all over the country joining in.

In December, 1989, the movement led to the end of 41 years of communist rule, as Vaclav Havel, a playwright and leading anticommunist was elected president.

Let's do a quick check of your understanding.

Which country became the first Soviet satellite state to end communist rule? Was it A: Czechoslovakia, B: Hungary, C: Poland, or D: Romania? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, the correct answer is Poland.

Very well done if you've got that right.

Let's do another quick check.

What was the name of the peaceful movement that ended communist rule in Czechoslovakia? Was it A: The Silk Revolution, B: The Satin Revolution, or C: The Velvet Revolution? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, very well done if you said the correct answer was C, the Velvet Revolution.

The end of communist regimes in Eastern Europe did not always happen peacefully.

Nicolae Ceausescu had ruled Romania since 1965.

In December, 1989, protestors calling for change were fired upon by the secret police.

The protests escalated into a national uprising against Ceausescu's regime, and after a short but bloody conflict, Ceausescu and his wife Elena were captured, and, after a brief trial, executed by firing squad.

Let's check your understanding.

The communist regime in Romania was overthrown peacefully.

Is this true or false? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you said that statement was false, but let's see if you can justify why.

Pause the video now, have a think about why that statement is false and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, so the statement is false, and to explain why, you might have said the communist leader of Romania, Nicolae Ceausescu was overthrown after a short but bloody uprising and executed along with his wife.

Well done if you wrote something similar.

We're now ready for the first practise task of this lesson.

So what I'd like you to do is answer the question: Why did the Soviet Union lose control of its satellite states in Eastern Europe? I want you to explain why in one paragraph and you should use the following words in your answer: Brezhnev Doctrine, choose, reform, and democracy.

Pause the video now, have a go at writing your paragraph and press play when you're ready to compare your paragraph with a model answer.

Okay, you were asked to explain why did the Soviet Union lose control over its satellite states in Eastern Europe? And your answer may include: In 1988, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev rejected the Brezhnev Doctrine.

In his speech to the United Nations, he said that the Soviet Union would allow its satellite states to choose how they wanted to be governed.

Gorbachev hoped that Soviet satellite states would embrace the type of reform he had introduced in the Soviet Union, but remain communist.

However, within 12 months of Gorbachev's speech, many satellite states, including Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Romania, had rejected communism in favour of democracy.

Well done for all of your hard work on that first practise task and well done if your paragraph looks similar to the one that we've just gone through.

We're now ready to move on to the second part of this lesson in which we're going to be learning about how the collapse of communism in other Eastern European countries led to pressure for change in East Germany.

The collapse of communism in other Eastern European countries alarmed the East German authorities and they were determined to resist similar changes.

They had responded cautiously to Gorbachev's new thinking and the policies of perestroika and glasnost.

They viewed these reforms as potentially destabilising to their regime and sought to maintain communist control by censoring information.

For example, publications from Gorbachev's Soviet Union were banned for fears that they would undermine communism.

They also suppressed dissent among their population by using the Stasi, the East German secret police, to intimidate and arrest opponents of communism.

Let's do a quick check of your understanding.

I want you to discuss this question with a partner.

How did the East German authorities attempt to prevent demands for reform from threatening communist control in East Germany? Pause the video now, talk to your partner and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, welcome back.

I hope that was a useful conversation.

You were asked to discuss with your partner how the East German authorities tried to prevent demands for reform from threatening communist control in East Germany, and you could have said something like this: They censored information and used the Stasi, the East German secret police to intimidate and arrest opponents of communism.

Well done if you said something similar in your conversation with your partner.

Despite the efforts of the East German authorities, the majority of people in East Germany responded to the end of communism in other East European countries with increasing hope and determination for change within their own country.

Witnessing neighbouring states like Poland and Czechoslovakia peacefully overthrow their communist regimes and embrace democracy inspired East Germans to demand similar freedoms and reforms. There were widespread protests and demonstrations, particularly in cities like Leipzig, Dresden and Berlin where citizens voiced their desire for political change and reunification with West Germany.

On October the 6th, 1989, Gorbachev visited East Germany and told its leaders that the Soviet Union would not intervene and support them to end the protests.

On the 23rd of October, 300,000 people joined a protest against the communist government in Leipzig.

Then on the 4th of November, 1989, in what was the largest demonstration in East Germany's history, over a million people protested in East Berlin demanding democracy and free elections.

As calls for change intensified, the phrase "Die Mauer muss weg!", "The wall must go!", became a rallying cry amongst demonstrators.

Let's do a quick check of your understanding.

The paragraph on the screen contains some mistakes and is incorrect.

I want you to identify and correct the mistakes.

So pause the video, have a go at identifying and correcting the mistakes and press play when you're ready to see the corrected paragraph.

Okay, well done for your hard work there.

You were asked to identify and correct the mistakes in the paragraph, and the corrected paragraph should read: Witnessing neighbouring states in Eastern Europe overthrow their communist governments in favour of democracy encouraged East Germans to demand similar reform.

All over East Germany, there were widespread protests and demonstrations where people demanded change and reunification with West Germany.

Well done if you managed to identify and correct all of those mistakes.

Let's do another quick check of your understanding.

How many people attended East Germany's largest ever protest in East Berlin on the 4th of November, 1989? Was it A: 300,000 people, B: 500,000 people, C: 750,000 people, or D: over a million people? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

The correct answer is D: Over a million people attended East Germany's largest ever protest in East Berlin on the 4th of November, 1989.

Well done if you got that correct.

You are now ready to move on to the second practise task of today's lesson.

I want you to explain why there were widespread demonstrations and protests across East Germany in 1989.

You should explain in one paragraph and use the following words in your answer: control, Stasi, reform, and reunification.

Pause the video now, have a go at writing your paragraph and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, you were asked to explain why there were widespread demonstrations and protests across East Germany in 1989, and your answer may include: In 1989, people in East Germany came together to demonstrate for reform.

They wanted democracy and reunification with West Germany.

The authorities in East Germany were determined to resist the reform that had led to the collapse of communist rule in other East European countries, and they used the Stasi and censorship to try and control the population relation.

Despite this, the protests intensified, and on the 4th of November, 1989, over a million people came together in East Berlin to demand change.

Very well done for all of your hard work on that second practise task and well done if you've written something similar to the model response that we've just gone through.

We're now ready to move on to the third and final part of today's lesson, in which we'll be learning about the events that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall.

In a famous speech in 1946, the former British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill used the metaphor of an Iron Curtain to describe how Europe was divided between the democratic capitalist societies of the West and the communist east.

In 1961, Churchill's metaphorical division had become a stark reality with the construction of the Berlin Wall.

The wall which divided the city of Berlin emphasised Soviet control over Eastern Europe and became a powerful symbol of oppression, dividing families and restricting freedom.

From 1989, as the former Soviet satellite states of Eastern Europe rejected communism, it was events in Hungary that paved the way for the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Let's do a quick check of your understanding.

Which leader first used the metaphor of an Iron Curtain to describe the division of Europe? Was it A: Franklin D.

Roosevelt, B: Harry Truman, C: Joseph Stalin, or D: Winston Churchill? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

The correct answer was D: Winston Churchill.

Well done if you got that correct.

In 1988, Gorbachev had accepted that Hungary would become a democratic multiparty state.

The following year, Hungary made the decision to open its border with Austria, creating a hole in the Iron Curtain.

Hungary had begun to dismantle its border fortifications in May, 1989, but when pictures of Hungarian and Austrian politicians cutting the border fence were published on the 27th of June, 1989, thousands of East Germans were encouraged to travel to Hungary in the hope of being able to escape to the West.

After allowing some to leave for West Germany via Austria in August, the Hungarian government decided to allow any East Germans out from the 11th of September, 1989.

Let's do a quick check of your understanding.

Which country created a hole in the Iron Curtain by opening its border with Austria in 1989? Was it A: Czechoslovakia, B: East Germany, C: Hungary, or D: Poland? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you selected that the correct answer is C: Hungary.

Now that it was possible for East Germans to travel to the West through Hungary, it put pressure on East Germany to open its border with West Germany.

On the 9th of November, 1989, the East German authorities announced the opening of border crossings into West Germany.

The announcement was initially met with confusion and disbelief by East Berliners; however, as the news spread, thousands of people gathered at the border crossings, particularly at the iconic Checkpoint Charlie and the Bornholmer Strasse crossing.

In the evening, overwhelmed by the sheer number of people demanding passage, East German border guards at various checkpoints began to open gates.

As the barriers were opened, East and West Berliners started crossing freely between the two sides, celebrating, hugging and chanting slogans of unity and freedom.

As East and West Berliners mingled and crossed freely for the first time in decades, some began chipping away at the wall using hammers, chisels, and other tools.

The scenes of joy and euphoria were broadcast worldwide, symbolising the end of the division that had defined Berlin and Germany for nearly three decades.

Let's do a quick check of your understanding.

The events on the screen are listed in the incorrect order.

I want you to place them in the correct chronological order.

So pause the video now, have a go at placing them in the correct order and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done for all of your hard work on that task.

You are asked to place the events in the correct chronological order, which is as follows: Firstly, Gorbachev rejected the Brezhnev Doctrine.

Gorbachev then accepts that Hungary will become a democracy.

Hungary opens its border with Austria, thousands of East Germans go to Hungary to travel to the West.

East Germany opens the border crossings in Berlin, and finally, East and West Berliners cross the border and mix freely.

Well done if you've got these events in the correct order.

We're now ready to move on to the third and final practise task of today's lesson.

I want you to write an account analysing the events that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall.

You should aim to write about three key events and may wish to write about the following: Gorbachev's rejection of the Brezhnev Doctrine, Hungary's decision to open their border with Austria, and the opening of the border crossings in Berlin.

You should try to organise your answer in chronological order, so pause the video now, have a go at writing your answer and then press play when you're ready to compare your answer with a model response.

Okay, well done for all of your hard work on that final practise task.

You were asked to write an account analysing the events that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall.

You were asked to write about three events in chronological order, and your answer may include: In 1988, in a speech to the United Nations, Gorbachev announced that the Soviet Union rejected the Brezhnev Doctrine and would allow its satellite states to choose how they were governed.

Gorbachev hoped that the satellite states would embrace reform but remain communist; however, his announcement led to the collapse of communist rule in most of these countries, including Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Romania, as people rejected communism in favour of democracy.

In 1989, prior to holding democratic elections, Hungary decided to open their borders with Austria.

This enabled East Germans to travel to the West through these countries.

For your second paragraph you could have written: When Hungary opened their border with Austria, thousands of East Germans attempted to travel to the West through Hungary.

The East German authorities had attempted to stop communist rule from being undermined by increasing censorship and using the Stasi to arrest opponents.

Despite this, there were widespread demonstrations calling for an end to communism.

With protests against communist rule intensifying, Hungary's decision to open the border with Austria, put pressure on the East German authorities to open the border with West Germany.

And then finally, for your last paragraph you could have written: On the 9th of November, 1989, the East German authorities announced that they would open the border crossings in Berlin.

As the news spread, huge crowds gathered at the crossings along the Berlin Wall that divided East Berlin and West Berlin.

In the evening, as the crowds grew in size, East German border guards began to open the gates.

This allowed thousands of people to cross the border freely.

Many of the people crossing the border began to use whatever tools they could find to start to break down the hated Berlin Wall.

Very well done for all of your hard work on that final practise task and well done if you've written three paragraphs that are similar to the ones that we've just gone through.

We're at the end of our lesson now, so it's a good opportunity for us to pause and recap our key learning points.

Under Gorbachev, the Soviet Union rejected the Brezhnev Doctrine and allowed its satellite states to choose how they were governed.

As a consequence, the USSR lost control of its satellite states as people in Eastern Europe rejected communist rule and chose democracy.

In East Germany, despite increasing repression by the authorities, there were widespread protests demanding democracy and reunification.

Hungary's decision to open its border with Austria allowed East Germans to escape to the West, and it put pressure on the East German authorities to open their border with West Germany.

Finally, the Berlin Wall fell on the 9th of November, 1989.

Well done for all of your hard work in today's lesson.

It's been a real pleasure to teach you, and I look forward to teaching you again soon.