East Germans Swell Embassy in Prague - Lobkowicz Palace (Prague, CZ) - News Article Locations on Waymarking.com

The Embassy of Germany in Prague, located in Baroque Lobkowicz Palace, was in 1989 site one of the most important events which started the fall of communist regimes of former Soviet block. Information about these events were published in all important media worldwide - also in New York Times in September 29th, 1989.

In the eve of the Revolutions of 1989, the palais became the resort of numerous East German refugees who had reached Prague, climbed over the fence and camped out in the grounds. While there were small groups hiding there occasionally since the embassy was opened in 1974, the number rose to several thousands in September, causing serious problems of supply and hygiene. Behind the scenes the West German government negotiated with East German authorities and the Soviet Union how to solve these worsening conditions. When Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher in the evening of 30 September stepped on the balcony to announce an agreement on the refugees' voyage to West Germany, the crowd cheered on the keyword Ausreise (departure). This event marked an emotional and significant moment in German history.

Until on 3 November the East German authorities closed the border with Czechoslovakia, many more GDR citizens fled to the embassy in the following weeks, wearing down the patience of the Czechoslovak authorities which gave in eventually, letting all East Germans travel directly to West Germany. Thus, they broke their part of the Iron Curtain, the Czechoslovak border fortifications during the Cold War. These events are commemorated by a golden statue of a Trabant car in the garden of the embassy. On 9 November the Berlin Wall fell, and the Czechs would succeed in the Velvet Revolution. [wiki]