The most visible sign of the divisions that have scarred the area for so long is the 6m-high wall of corrugated steel, concrete and chain link that controversially divides Belfast's Protestant and Catholic communities, covering some 6.5km in West Belfast alone, with 34km of coverage in all. Its steel gates generally open during limited daytime hours.
Begun in 1969 as a 'temporary measure', the Peace Line has outlasted the Berlin Wall, although the Northern Ireland Executive committed to its removal by mutual consent by 2023.
