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Czechoslovak Ministry of Interior Memorandum, Information on the Security Situation in the CSSR

In October 1989, the situation was growing dire for the Czechoslovak communists. Increasing unrest and change in other Eastern Bloc countries was quickly isolating conservatives and emboldening the domestic opposition.

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Berlin Embassy Cable, GDR Crisis: The Honecker Era Fades Quickly

In this excerpt of a diplomatic cable from the U.S. Embassy in Berlin, we see the first official analysis of East Germany's new leader Egon Krenz, who replaced Erich Honecker on October 18, 1989.

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Telephone Call from Chancellor Helmut Kohl of the Federal Republic of Germany

In this telephone conversation between West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and U.S. President George H. W. Bush on October 23, 1989, the two leaders discuss the revolutionary events in Hungary, Poland, and East Germany.

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Bonn Embassy cable, The German Question and Reunification

As events in Eastern Europe and especially in East Germany continued to pick up the pace, speculation began to grow, both within the two Germanies and internationally, that German reunification was once again a topic for debate.

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Czechoslovak Ministry of Interior Memorandum, The Security Situation in the CSSR in the Period Before 28 October

October 28 holds a special place on the Czechoslovak political calendar because on that day the First Czechoslovak Republic was established in 1918.

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Review

National Security Archive: Sources on Latin America

The documents on the website provide students the opportunity to construct their own historical interpretations.
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Memorandum of Conversation Between Egon Krenz, Secretary General of the Socialist Unity Party and Mikhail S. Gorbachev

The new Secretary General of East Germany, Egon Krenz, traveled to Moscow on November 1, 1989 to meet in person with Gorbachev and assess the situation in East Germany and discuss possible paths forward.

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Soviet Record of Conversation between Mikhail Gorbachev and Egon Krenz

The new Secretary General of East Germany, Egon Krenz, traveled to Moscow on November 1, 1989 to meet in person with Gorbachev and assess the situation in East Germany and discuss possible paths forward.

Detail of The Landing of Captain Cook at Botany Bay, 1770  depicted in a 1930s travel poster
Review

Documenting a Democracy: Australia's Story

This site has particular strengths in presenting legal and constitutional materials on the emergence of a democratic nation in a colonial context.
Source

Sofia Embassy Cable, Bulgarian Reportage of Krenz-Gorbachev Summit Stresses Unanimity, Stability, and Party Supremacy

On November 1, 1989, the new East German leader Egon Krenz traveled to Moscow for a summit meeting with Mikhail Gorbachev to discuss the mounting crisis in the GDR and seek a greater level of cooperation between the two states.