{"product_id":"checkpoint-charlie-the-cold-war-the-berlin-wall-and-the-most-dangerous-place-on-earth-paperback","title":"Checkpoint Charlie: The Cold War, the Berlin Wall, and the Most Dangerous Place on Earth - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eIain MacGregor\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA \"constantly captivating...well-researched and often moving\" (\u003ci\u003eThe Wall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e) history of Checkpoint Charlie, the famous military gate on the border of East and West Berlin where the United States confronted the USSR during the Cold War. \u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn the early 1960s, East Germany committed a billion dollars to the creation of the Berlin Wall, an eleven-foot-high barrier that consisted of seventy-nine miles of fencing, 300 watchtowers, 250 guard dog runs, twenty bunkers, and was operated around the clock by guards who shot to kill. Over the next twenty-eight years, at least five thousand people attempt to smash through it, swim across it, tunnel under it, or fly over it. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn 1989, the East German leadership buckled in the face of a civil revolt that culminated in half a million East Berliners demanding an end to the ban on free movement. The world's media flocked to capture the moment which, perhaps more than any other, signaled the end of the Cold War. Checkpoint Charlie had been the epicenter of global conflict for nearly three decades. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eNow, \"in capturing the essence of the old Cold War [MacGregor] may just have helped us to understand a bit more about the new one\" (\u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e, London)--the mistrust, oppression, paranoia, and fear that gripped the world throughout this period. \u003ci\u003eCheckpoint Charlie \u003c\/i\u003eis about the nerve-wracking confrontation between the West and USSR, highlighting such important global figures as Eisenhower, Stalin, JFK, Nikita Khrushchev, Mao Zedung, Nixon, Reagan, and other politicians of the period. He also includes never-before-heard interviews with the men who built and dismantled the Wall; children who crossed it; relatives and friends who lost loved ones trying to escape over it; military policemen and soldiers who guarded the checkpoints; CIA, MI6, and Stasi operatives who oversaw operations across its borders; politicians whose ambitions shaped it; journalists who recorded its story; and many more whose living memories contributed to the full story of Checkpoint Charlie.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eIain MacGregor is the author of the acclaimed history of Cold War Berlin: \u003ci\u003eCheckpoint Charlie\u003c\/i\u003e and the award-winning \u003ci\u003eThe Lighthouse of Stalingrad: The Hidden Truth Behind WWII's Greatest Battle\u003c\/i\u003e. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, has spoken at many literary festivals and conferences in the UK and abroad, appeared on podcasts such as \u003ci\u003eThe Rest Is History\u003c\/i\u003e and on television documentaries. His writing has appeared in \u003ci\u003eThe\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eWashington Post\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBBC History Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eThe\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eGuardian\u003c\/i\u003e. He lives in London.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 352\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.9 x 8.3 x 5.4 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e November 10, 2020\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50325579235565,"sku":"9781982100049","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0020\/8918\/9441\/files\/O8p2pz8OMT9781982100049.webp?v=1784849454","url":"https:\/\/www.webster.direct\/en-gb\/products\/checkpoint-charlie-the-cold-war-the-berlin-wall-and-the-most-dangerous-place-on-earth-paperback","provider":"Webster.Direct","version":"1.0","type":"link"}