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Hungarian Revolution -

The downfall of Communism actually began long before the events of 1989. Indeed, the first cracks in the wall appeared in November 1956 when Soviet forces invaded Hungary to crush what had become known as the Hungarian Revolution.

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Prague Spring - Czechoslovakia's so-called Prague Spring—a period of political liberalization and pro-reform sentiment—was brutally suppressed in August 1968 when the Soviet Union and other members of the Warsaw Pact invaded the country

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Emergence of Solidarity in Poland - Solidarity, the first trade union in a Warsaw Pact country that was not controlled by a communist party, was founded in September 1980 at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk under the leadership of Lech Wałęsa.

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The Solidarity movement -

The Solidarity movement emerged as a reaction to policies introduced by the Polish Communist Party. A strike by shipyard workers demanding an increase in pay quickly spread across the country. Pictured: Lech Wałęsa during the strike at the Lenin shipyard, August 1980.

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The beginning of the end of Communism in Eastern Europe - The Polish government eventually imposed martial law (pictured), which saw an end to the Solidarity movement. But the unprecedented industrial action had seriously undermined the Soviet Union’s power and influence. Despite its ultimate failure, the movement heralded the beginning of the end of Communism in Eastern Europe.

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Mikhail Gorbachev -

In March 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became leader of the USSR. Forward thinking and reform-minded, Gorbachev began to overhaul the Soviet system by allowing perestroika (economic restructuring, e.g. competition in business) and glasnost (openness).

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Perestroika and glasnost - Perestroika—literally a broad policy of economic restructuring—and glasnost, which was interpreted as an expression of freethinking, encouraged ordinary Russian citizens to openly voice their concerns and unhappiness with the regime.

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Economic reforms -

With people now speaking out against the central government, Gorbachev’s policy aims found a wide audience. This put pressure on the bureaucrats to approve his intended economic reforms. In time, the policies had their intended effect. But things soon started to spiral out of control.

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Glasnost - While glasnost ostensibly advocated openness and political criticism, these were only permitted within a narrow spectrum dictated by the state. The general public in the Eastern Bloc was still subject to harsh secret police and political repression.

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Democratization -

As more and more Russians embraced Gorbachev’s idea of demokratizatsiya (democratization)—and realized he would not crack down on their newly won freedom of expression—the USSR's firebrand leader urged his Central and Southeast European counterparts to imitate perestroika and glasnost in their own countries.

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Liberalization -

Reformists in Hungary and Poland were emboldened by the wave of liberalization spreading from the east. (Throughout the mid-1980s, Poland’s Solidarity movement persisted solely as an underground organization, but another wave of nationwide strikes in 1988 forced the government to open dialogue with Lech Wałęsa).

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Renouncing the use of force - In early July 1989, Mikhail Gorbachev implicitly renounced the use of force against other Eastern Bloc nations.

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End of one-party rule in Poland - Following talks between Solidarity and Communist authorities headed by First Secretary General Wojciech Jaruzelski, a non-Communist (pictured with Romania's leader Nicolae Ceaușescu), Tadeusz Mazowiecki was nominated as Prime Minister of Poland, and the Soviet Union voiced no protest. Five days later, on August 24, 1989, Poland’s parliament ended more than 40 years of one-party rule.

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Non-Communist government -

After Poland, Hungary was next to switch to a non-Communist government.

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The removal of Hungary’s border fence - Hungary had already started to dismantle the Iron Curtain. In April 1989, the Hungarian government ordered the electricity be turned off for the 150-mi (240-km) barbed-wire fence along the Hungary-Austria border.

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Open border - The following month, border guards began removing sections of the barrier. The open border meant that it was easier for Hungarians to cross into Austria for goods and services. Pictured: the border today.

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End of Soviet military occupation in Hungary -

In October 1989, the Communist regime in Hungary was formally abolished; in March 1990, Hungary was transformed from a People’s Republic into the Republic of Hungary; and in 1991, the Soviet military occupation of Hungary ended.

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German Democratic Republic - The German Democratic Republic (GDR) was a state established by the Soviet Union in 1949 from territory that was administered and occupied by Soviet forces at the end of WWII.

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West Berlin - The Soviet zone surrounded West Berlin but didn’t include it. As a result, West Berlin remained outside of the jurisdiction of the GDR.

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Building of the Berlin Wall -

Effectively a satellite state of the Soviet Union, East Germany became the most successful economy in the Eastern Bloc. However, emigration to the West was a significant problem. In order to plug the leak, the government fortified its western border and, in 1961, built the Berlin Wall.

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Deterrent -

For 28 years, the GDR’s heavily guarded western border and the Berlin Wall proved a significant deterrent to anyone wishing to flee communism.

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Stemming the flow - But Hungary’s open border meant that by the end of September 1989, more than 30,000 East Germans had escaped to the West. To stem the flow, the GDR eventually denied travel to Hungary.

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Czechoslovakia border closed - With Hungary’s border closed again, this left Czechoslovakia as the only neighboring state to which East Germans could escape. However, the East German authorities closed that border too, on October 3, 1989. Pictured: the border today.

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East Germany begins to crumble -

By now, the whole world was watching the momentous events unfolding in Eastern Europe. Gorbachev met with East German leader Erich Honecker (pictured), who remained opposed to internal reform: Honecker was later deposed by Egon Krenz. The border to Czechoslovakia was opened again on November 1, 1989.

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The "Wall" is torn down -

East German authorities eventually caved to public pressure by allowing East German citizens to enter West Berlin and West Germany directly. On November 9, 1989, new crossing points were forced open in the Berlin Wall. Eventually, people using hammers and chisels tore down entire sections of the wall. 

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The "Velvet Revolution" -

Czechoslovakia saw a non-violent transition of power from the Communist government to a parliamentary republic in what became known as the "Velvet Revolution." Writer and dissident Václav Havel was sworn in as president on December 29, 1989.

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Bulgaria - On November 10, 1989 (the day after the Berlin Wall was breached), Bulgaria's long-serving leader Todor Zhivkov was ousted by his Politburo. On December 11, 1989, the Communist Party in Bulgaria announced its intention to abandon its monopoly on power. In June 1990, the first free elections since 1931 were held in the country.

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Nicolae Ceaușescu -

Romanian Communist Party leader Nicolae Ceaușescu was confident he could ride out the anti-Communist uprisings sweeping the rest of Eastern Europe. But he ultimately used his feared Securitate (secret police) to violently suppress anti-communist demonstrations.

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Rebellion - On December 21, 1989, during a speech, dissatisfied protesters started to boo and heckle the dictator (seen here on the same balcony in 1967). Securitate forces turned on the protesters with deadly force.

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Ceaușescu executed -

The following day, however, the Romanian military sided with the protesters to fight the Securitate. Eventually arrested and hastily tried, Ceaușescu and his wife Elena were executed on Christmas Day 1989. The Romanian Revolution was the bloodiest of the revolutions of 1989.

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Baltic states -

By May 1990, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania had all declared independence from the Soviet Union. The USSR recognized their status as such by September 1991.

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Albania -

Albania under Ramiz Alia introduced some liberalization measures in 1990, such as allowing for freedom to travel abroad. Albania’s former Communists were defeated in elections held in March 1992. Pictured: a Marxism-Leninism flag poster from 1978.

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Yugoslavia -

Though not part of the Warsaw Pact, Yugoslavia saw a series of clashes between the emerging civil society and the Communist regime. The breakup of the Soviet Union led to the fragmentation of Yugoslavia, with escalating ethnic and national tensions stoked by the drive for independence leading to a series of brutal civil wars.

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Dissolution of the USSR -

On July 1, 1991, the Warsaw Pact was officially dissolved. By December 1991, the Soviet Union disintegrated and ceased to exist. The Cold War was over and with it, Communism in Europe.

See also: The US is ready for the worst-case events

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