The most significant factor leading to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 was the wave of democratization sweeping across Eastern Europe, fueled by public discontent and calls for reform. Economic struggles, political repression, and a desire for freedom led to mass protests in East Germany. The peaceful protests and the declining influence of the Soviet Union under Mikhail Gorbachev's policies of Glasnost and Perestroika empowered East Germans to demand change. The wall fell on November 9, 1989, symbolizing the end of the Cold War era, leading to the reunification of Germany and the collapse of communist regimes across Eastern Europe.