ABSTRACT
The opening of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989 ultimately paved the way for the end of Communist rule in the German Democratic Republic and the unification of both German states roughly a year later. Although the downfall of Nicolae Ceausescu in Romania was still two months off and there were still Communist regimes in Albania, Bulgaria, and some Yugoslav republics, in November, 1989 it was clear that the days of Communist rule in East Central Europe were numbered.
