Berlin wasn’t blockaded — and that changes everything you think.

Was Berlin really “blockaded” in 1948? Or have we been repeating a Cold War myth for nearly eighty years?

In this explosive episode of History Rage, cultural historian and author Joseph Pearson dismantles one of the most entrenched narratives of the early Cold War. We all know the story: Stalin sealed off West Berlin, starving its people, and the West heroically saved the city through the Berlin Airlift. But what if Berlin was never truly blockaded at all?

Drawing on deep archival research and firsthand accounts from Berliners, Pearson argues that the term “blockade” is historically misleading. While ground and rail access from West Germany was restricted, movement between East and West Berlin continued. Civilians crossed borders. Food flowed in. Even Soviet authorities offered rations. The airlift was real — and extraordinary — but the idea of a city completely sealed off is far more myth than fact.

We explore:

• What a “blockade” actually means — and why the word matters
• How ordinary Berliners experienced the airlift
• The women who built Tegel Airport in just 90 days
• The terrifying near-misses that could have sparked World War III
• The propaganda war that turned former enemies into allies
• Why the Berlin Airlift remains a masterclass in geopolitical brinkmanship

Joseph Pearson, originally from Canada and now based in Berlin, specialises in everyday history — the lived experience behind the headlines. His latest book examines the Berlin Airlift through the eyes of civilians and pilots, revealing a more complex, human and politically charged story.

Guest Details:

Joseph Pearson is a cultural historian and author based in Berlin.

Book: The Airlift: Victories, Myths, and the Berlin Blockade

Buy here: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/10120/9781803998220

Follow Joseph on Instagram @writing_joseph

If you care about Cold War history, post-war Germany, the Berlin Blockade, the Berlin Airlift, or how propaganda shapes memory — this episode will challenge what you thought you knew.

Episode recommendations:

Episode 219 – Giles Milton on Post War Berlin - https://pod.fo/e/2f6bc6

Episode 103 – Katja Hoyer on East Germany - https://pod.fo/e/21793e

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History is human. History is political. And sometimes… history is wrong.

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