The Berlin Crisis

• summarise the Berlin Crisis

  (1948-49) 1948 June 24th closure of all land routes into Berlin by Stalin from the Western zones in Germany. began running out of food and coal. response on June 26th US + GB begin airlifting supplies into Berlin
• why did Stalin create the Berlin Blockade

  he wants complete control over Berlin- fears that Eastern Germans will see capitalism in West Berlin and want to move there or to West Germany- abandon communism. keep Germany weak- losses of WW2, avoid WW3
• immediate response to blockade?

  counter-blockade to east berlin. (not as effective as within eastern zone whereas west berlin is cut off from west germany)
• what were the air corridors agreed with the soviets in 1945 and what products did the planes bring

  3 corridors 20 miles wide. brought coal and food- winter coming + stop starvation. prevent turn to communism
• why did US + GB supply the 2 mill ppl of Berlin for a year- they had just fought them in a war?!

  need a strong defence from communism- separates EE from WE. stable economy, stable trading partner. stop extremist party developing again like Nazis during depression + therefore avoid another war
• how many tonnes of supply did the airlift deliver to w berlin everyday

  200 tonnes. later upped to 4500. record = 13000 tonnes in 24 hrs
• how did Stalin react to the planes flying into w berlin

  got Soviet pilots to 'buzz' the airlift planes- intimidation tactic. demanded removal of the Deutschmark
• did America get publicity for the airlift

  yes- Candy bomber- dropped sweets, chewing gum and chocolate in parachutes for children of w berlin. propaganda. radio was used to spread good news + raise morale in berlin
• why did the airlift eventually succeed

  mild winter. americans managed to bring in enough supplies. counter blockade was hurting e berlin. soviets failed to drive western allies out of berlin. may 1949 berlin blockade stopped
• length of time airlift lasted? time between each plane landing at Tempelhof Airport? total number of flights?

  1. 10 months. 2. 90 secs. 275,000
• main consequences of berlin airlift?

  Germany divided into 2 countries, east and west. NATO formed- one big alliance- protect each other (against Stalin)
• how far was there an agreement on reparations

  reparations to be paid in material + equipment. most go to USSR. Soviet Union to be given 1/4 of industrial output from Western zones in return for food + coal. [$20 bill reject by Truman- too severe]
• how would the German economy work

  one economic unit- Allied Control Council = governing body of the Allied occupation zones
• what was the US plan for Germany's economy during the war and how/why did it change

  the Morgenthau Plan- turn Germany into an agricultural economy- never able to wage industrial warfare again. Truman concerned by Stalin- allow economy to recover or millions will starve + turn to communism
• what happened in Jan 1947

  US and Britain merged their occupation zones to form Bizonia. this violates Yolta & Potsdam agreements- Stalin sees it as a threat as they intend to rebuild and restore the german economy
• when was the marshall plan launched

  June 1947
• what do soviet representatives do in March 1948

  work out of the Allied Control Commission- revenge for Marshall plan + Bizonia. no longer 4 agreed zones- don't want to lose control over east germany. can no longer work collaboratively in germany with allies
• who joined Bizonia and when

  march 1948- French make it Trizonia- form economic capitalist barrier to communism. (believe if Germany falls so will rest of Europe- Domino Theory)
• why does the US include western occupation zones in the marshall plan

  rebuild the economy. stop communism. seen as a betrayal of wartime alliance- no aid to the east
• what do the western powers introduce in june 1948

  new currency- the Deutschmark- to western zones. aim to create a unified West German State and boost economy by backing currency with US dollar.- west-east divide deepens
• what do the Soviets then introduce in the same month

  Ostmark- worth much less than the Deutschmark. retaliation to Deutschmark. trying to maintain control of East Berlin. suspicion grows between Soviets and western powers
• june 24th 1948


  Berlin Blockade
• the American General in charge of Berlin wanted to send an armed convoy to punch through the soviet army at the border- why do the allies not use this method to tackle the blockade

  too aggressive- don't want ww3! airlift could be shot down by soviets but Soviets don't want war either
• what did Britain, France and the US allow their 3 occupation zones to become in May 1949

  one united state known as the Federal Republic of Germany. new parliament = the Bundestag. capital = Bonn. western zones in Berlin merged to form West Berlin
• how did Stalin respond to these developments

  created the German Democratic Republic- East Germany. only Eastern bloc countries recognised it as its own country whereas the Federal Republic didn't officially recognise till the 1970s
• what events triggered the formation of NATO + what was it

  the Berlin Blockade + communist takeover in Czeckoslovakia- North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. defensive alliance- agree to come to the assistance of any member country if attacked. message = stand firm against communism
• how did NATO impact America n involvement in Europe

  lead to ongoing presence of US military in Europe- stationed nuclear weapons here
• what did the formation of NATO motivate Stalin to do

  create the Warsaw Pact. felt threatened by the possibility of Germany rebuilding and restoring their military power and strength. countries in the Warsaw Pact = eastern bloc
• what was the purpose of the pact? was it an alliance of equals though?

  defend each other from attack. no, leadership = fully soviet
• did these two alliances lessen or raise global tension

  raise- rivalry between US and USSR with other countries taking sides.

  lessen- two opposing camps could act as a deterrent as war would become a world war which nobody wants